


Kill Them With Success, Bury Them With A Smile

by loki_dokey



Category: Borderlands, Tales from the Borderlands - Fandom
Genre: Abuse, Explicit Sexual Content, Intern!Rhys, M/M, PA!Rhys, Pre-Sequel Jack, Programmer!Jack, Rated E for later chapters, Strangulation, Torture, Violence, Waterboarding, mention of rape
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-27
Updated: 2016-06-23
Packaged: 2018-05-29 12:11:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 43,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6374254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loki_dokey/pseuds/loki_dokey
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jack is sick of being ridiculed and embarrassed by the Hyperion CEO. He goes above and beyond the call of duty but what does he get for it? Absolutely fuck all.<br/>Well, almost fuck all.<br/>What he does get is a mouthy, good-for-nothing-yet-painfully-competent, annoyingly pretty intern that he doesn't want anything to do with. </p><p> </p><p>...At first.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> This will be a multi-chapter fic and I promise you it's not going where you think it's going ;)

Disgruntled and frustrated, Jack slammed the door to his office and leant against the wall, focusing his breathing so he did _not_ throw a punch at a window or at Tassiter himself. The meeting had not gone well. Once again, Tassiter had shown him up in front of the board, causing Jack to look like a completely unknowledgeable ass.

“Perhaps you need someone to _help_ you, Mr. Lawrence,” the snake had hissed through its teeth. “It seems that all this hard work is just that. Too _hard_ for you.”

The board had sniggered at that, their fat red faces wobbling with their ugly laughter. Jack had clutched the edge of the table so hard that his knuckles had turned white.

“I’ll be putting your department on the intern program, Mr. Lawrence. You’ll be assigned some assistance.” Tassiter waved his hand around, nonchalant. “Some bottom feeder who can perhaps make your life a little easier.” He had flashed his sharp canines, pressing his fingertips against the desk and slowly sitting back into his chair. “Goodness knows you need it.”

Presently, Jack stormed over to his desk and slumped into his own chair, burying his head into his hands. Tassiter deserved nothing short of strangulation, that was for sure.

*

The following morning, Jack lay in bed staring at the ceiling. The clock read five, but he’d been awake for hours, falling in and out of an uncomfortable sleep. He didn’t want to go to work. He knew that Tassiter would be true to his word and that sooner rather than later some scrawny little blip from somewhere way down on the food chain would show up and be more of a problem than anything. Jack was doing just fine by himself. He didn’t need some slob-job chasing him around, asking him annoying questions and generally ruining things.

Sighing, he rolled out of bed and stretched.

Today was going to be a long day.

*

Dragging himself through Tassiter Hall, Jack bought a coffee and leant against the railings by the window, gazing down at Pandora. He sipped thoughtfully, enjoying the sickly sweet taste of too much sugar slipping over his tongue. He wondered what would happen if Tassiter fucked off. Who would take over Hyperion? He’d love the chance to run the show; he knew he could do a way better job than the current CEO. He’d goddamn treat his employees with respect, first off. Thoughts of the previous day’s shambles drifted into his mind and he squeezed his cup a little too hard. Hot coffee trickled onto his hand but he was too angry to care, simply hissing and lowering his brow.

One day, Jack hoped Tassiter would pay.

Jack hoped that maybe he’d be the one to cash in that check.

*

“No, sir. Definitely. Yes, I’ll make it happen. Okay.” Jack slammed the phone down and groaned. Tassiter had been running his mouth all morning: questioning why Jack had updated the moonshot system because it was all of a sudden crap now; arguing about what was a necessary next step for the Helios algorithms were... Jack was honestly done with all of his bullshit. He ran a hand through his hair and sat back, closing his eyes. The door to his office opened; he prayed it was someone here to shoot him.

“Um...Jack Lawrence?”

Jack cracked open one eye, his gaze falling upon a tall, pretty little thing with a cybernetic arm attachment and perfectly coiffed brown hair.

“Can I help you?” Jack grunted, closing his eye again and sighing. He didn’t need any more bad news today. There was a pause of silence followed by the sound of shuffling paperwork.

“I like to think so,” the kid replied, certainly sounding more confident. “I’m your new intern.”

Jack sat up and glared. The apparent “intern” balked and bit his lip, eyes going wide at Jack’s sudden ferocity. For a while that was how they remained: one enraged and the other in shock.

“Seriously? You’re here already?”

The kid swallowed and looked at his watch. “Well, I was told to be here for eight and it’s seven fifty so…”

“Oh my god,” Jack growled, fists hitting the desk hard as he stood. “No, that’s not what I meant. Fucking hell…” He blinked fast, pulling his hands down his face and staring. “You’re really the intern that Tassiter sent?”

The kid shifted from foot to foot, munching away at his lip. “Um, Tassiter didn’t send me...The intern program contacted me last night and told me you guys had an opening up here. It’s...I can...go?” He jerked his metal thumb towards the exit. “If my being here is going to be too much trouble?”

Oh, boy. Jack really _could_ kill Tassiter. But yet, as he regarded the lanky thing in his doorway, he was struck by a glorious idea and he grinned, causing the man in the doorway to visibly shudder. He would make it so that no intern would ever want to work up in his programming department again. He would make sure that this intern would leave and never want to come back. _Yes_ , Jack thought, curling his finger around his chin. He could make this work to his advantage.

“No, no,” he muttered, digging around in his top drawer to retrieve his pistol. Once his fingers wrapped around the handle, he drew it out and swiftly pointed it directly between the kid’s widened eyes. The young man took a step back, clutching at his briefcase as though it would be some sort of saving grace were Jack to pull the trigger.

“Now then, kiddo.” Jack advanced, waving the pistol in the air as he spoke. “You’re here, aren’t you? I might as well make use of you.” He was almost on top of the man now. The other was pressed against the wall beside the door, sweating gleaming at his hairline. When Jack saw his Adam’s Apple bob with a gulp, he knew it wouldn’t be too long before this little blip ran away screaming.

“Let Mr. Lawrence have a good long look at you.” Jack placed the end of his gun under the kid’s chin. The blue and brown eyes were blown wide open, watching his every move. His pretty mouth had fallen into an ‘o’ shape and his breathing was heavy. Jack could be jerking him off and he’d be wearing the same expression. Jack lifted his chin with the gun. He had a pretty neck. “Yes, you’ll do nicely. What’s your name?”

The kid gulped again. “I, um, my name is uh...”

“My-uh-ooh-ah-zippa-dee-doo-daa-day, fuck _me_.” Jack rolled his eyes and tapped the gun on the wall. “I haven’t got half a century to listen to you stutter.”

The kid swallowed hard, closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “My name is Rhys, sir.”

Jack placed a hand on the wall beside Rhys’ face, leaning in closely and locking their gazes. “You’re at the top now, Rhys. Don’t forget that. It takes a certain level of willpower and...” Jack eyed his gun which was now tracing down Rhys’ cheek, “...fearlessness to survive up here. Do you reckon you’ve got what it takes, cupcake?”

Out of the blue, a change in expression had Jack catching himself. Rhys switched from a shivering wreck of a boy to a straightened, stone-faced _man._ He leant forward into Jack’s space and frowned, crossing his arms.

“I’ve been through hell and back to get here, Mr. Lawrence. I’ve faced an abundance of assholes and idiots to be standing here with a signed intern paper in my bag and I’m damned good at programming if I do say so myself.” Rhys sucked in a breath and continued. “They could have fished any good for nothing out of the pool for you, but you got _me_.” He stepped forward; Jack held his ground but couldn’t help leaning away, scowling in the process. “I deserve to be here and I will work my ass off to prove it.”

“You really think you can stick it out here?” Jack stepped back, matching Rhys’s folded arms with his own. Rhys’s jaw was set. “You honestly believe you can last?” Jack snorted, turning around and walking away. He sat down at his desk and set his feet on the surface, smirking at Rhys who was glowering. “This is no programming games for your pals, kiddo. This ain’t no ECHO app software bullcrap. This is life and death _shit_.” Rhys stalked over, fished something from his bag and slammed it on the desk, locking a power stare with Jack. “You come in here so cocky and arrogant, thinking you’re the best fish in the pond and that I’m _oh so lucky_ to have been _gifted_ with you...” Jack leant forward, splaying his hands and grinning. “But let’s see how quickly this job breaks you, Rhysie boy.”

Not answering, Rhys pushed the piece of paper on the desk under Jack’s nose. He was attempting to stare Jack down, which had Jack cackling as he picked up the document. He scanned it quickly, chuckling, but silenced abruptly when he picked up on a specific paragraph.

_Harold Tassiter is the only person who may dismiss this intern from their position. The intern may, however, choose to leave of their own accord. If the intern makes this decision, a thorough investigation into the reason why they have opted to leave will be carried out. If their leaving is found to be due to malpractice on the department’s part, penalties will be faced. This may result in the dismissal of staff._

“So you can sob and moan about having an intern, and you can try your hardest to make my life a living hell, but I am here to _stay_ , Mr. Lawrence.” Jack didn’t recall stating he hadn’t wanted an intern but perhaps he’d been too obvious. This kid was quick. He was sharp. He was fierce in his own pretty little way.

Jack _hated_ him.

Rhys glared at Jack, who had almost ripped the paper apart in his hands. “I have worked too hard and too long to lose this opportunity to some proud, self-satisfied sack of shit programmer.”

Jack shoved himself to his feet, rounded the table and grabbed Rhys by the throat, lifting him so that his toes barely touched the ground.

“Careful now, Mr. Lawrence,” Rhys hissed, straining against the lack of oxygen. “You don’t want to make me leave now, do you?” The sickly sweet voice that poured out of his mouth had Jack dropping him and walking away, running his hands through his hair.

He had not been prepared for this.

He had not been prepared for this at _all._

*

Rhys turned out to be disgustingly competent. He didn’t bat an eyelid or even grumble when Jack sent him for a coffee every morning. He didn’t complain when Jack had him stapling booklets that hadn’t even needed printing. The way Rhys strolled in every morning, singsonging a ‘hello’ as he passed Jack’s desk was stomach churning and it made Jack angry in such a way that he never replied with anything more than a glance.

One morning, however, Jack was ready to singsong right back at his asshole of an intern. He’d spent the night concocting a plan that would bring the kid down a peg or two.

“Good morning, Mr. Lawrence.” Rhys waved and smiled as he entered the office. Jack waved and smiled back with as much enthusiasm as humanly possible. The odd turn of events had Rhys stalling, pausing in his step to grasp what he’d witnessed.

“Hey Rhys! Did ya sleep well?”

“Uh....”

Jack stood and clapped his hands together. “I have great news! The board are expecting a presentation next week on how to further the Chryses Project.”

Rhys passed Jack, placing his jacket on his chair before responding.

“That’s a good thing, right? I mean, we’ve been working on that for weeks.”

Waving his hand, Jack continued. “Yeah. Whatever. Anyway, I thought _you_ could present the ideas to the board.”

Rhys almost dropped his coffee. He gasped, throwing a hand to the back of his neck. “What?!”

Jack paced over, placing his hands on the kid’s shoulders. “I know, I know. I just...” Jack placed a hand on his own heart and took a deep breath. “I just feel that you really do have a _lot_ of potential and perhaps I’ve been a little harsh. This could really be a step up in the game for you, kiddo.”

The array of emotions that crossed Rhys’ face in the next few moments were almost laughable but Jack kept it together for the sake of his plan.

“I...oh my god, Jack are you sure? That’s huge! I don’t...Wow. Thanks?”

“No problem, cupcake! Be proud of yourself! You’ve earned it.”

As Rhys turned to his desk to internally gush over the news, Jack also turned back to his own desk. He smirked.

This kid had no idea what was coming.

*

Rhys spent the following few days dashing about the office finding supplies to make presentation boards. He also spent hours creating the perfect slideshow presentation. Jack watched carefully, noting all of the prep, all of the hours spent ensuring perfection.

 _Oh Rhys. Rhys, Rhys, Rhys,_ he thought to himself one afternoon as the man in question rattled on about something or another. _You haven’t got a clue how hard they’re gonna drag you._

Jack knew how it felt to plan and present and fail despite his hardest efforts. He knew how Tassiter and the board could make one _feel,_ no matter how confident or prepared he had been.

“How goes it, Rhys?” Jack asked with a yawn, stretching out in his chair. “Seems like you’re working real hard. I’m weirdly proud of you.”

Rhys snorted and continued tapping away at his computer. “I could do with a coffee, Jack.”

At this, Jack barked a laugh.

“Oh please. Don’t think that this stops you from being coffee caddy. Now that you mention it…I could do with a caffeine boost. Hop to it.”  
“But Jack I’m in the middle of-”

Snapping his fingers, Jack frowned. He hated putting on niceties for this kid. “Don’t question, just _do._ ”

Shoving himself up from his chair, Rhys grumbled as he crossed the room.

It was _music_ to Jack’s ears.


	2. The Beginning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your darling messages and kudos. I am having a lot of fun writing this! :D x

“And the system would be upgraded here, here and here.”

Rhys was well-dressed. Debonair. Confident.

Jack _loved_ it. He loved how snip-snap-smart every word dripping from Rhys’s smug mouth was. He loved how from his back seat he could see the faces of the board, smirking and glancing at one another as though the man before them was an absolute moron.

Rhys hadn’t noticed it yet.

And yet.

Jack was also angry.

He was angry at how Rhys’s confidence was well-deserved. At how every snip-snap-smart word dripping from his mouth rang with truth and was based on carefully researched fact. He was enraged at how the board sat there smirking and acting as though Rhys was an absolute moron when actually, _actually,_ they were well aware that this kid was one sharp little thing – a brain with long, long legs and perfectly coiffed brown hair.

They knew it.

Jack knew it.

And neither would _ever_ admit it.

“Ah yes,” Tassiter began, just as he always did after Jack had finished what he had to say. He stood, tugging at his lapels and sneering. Jack almost heard the sound of Rhys’s realisation. He saw the sudden straightening of his back as he looked from face to smirking face. From what Jack could see, Rhys had gone red.

“Young man, don’t you think we thought of these ideas already?” Tassiter spread his hands out, gesturing at his board. “We wanted outside-of-the-box ideas. Real...” He banged his fist on the table. “ _forward_ thinking. I would have thought a man of your youth would have such-”

“- but sir, this presentation makes perfect sense!”

Tassiter’s eyes blew wide. Jack rubbed his eyes with his fingers. The CEO leant forward on his fingertips, staring Rhys down like he was a piece of meat.

“Did you just... _interrupt_ me, boy?”

Rhys swallowed. It was loud. Jack heard it. Tassiter must have heard it, the corner of his mouth twitching at the sound.

“You are nothing but an intern who had a shot at the big time.” He walked around the table, dragging his fingers along the surface of the wall as he went. He approached Rhys and met him eye to eye. “If you _think_ that this opportunity will ever happen again, young man, you’d be mistaken. _No one_ , interrupts me in front of my board, you rude little prick. Get out of this boardroom.” He pointed to the door, thunder in his voice and fire in his eyes. “You are never welcome in here again.”

*

“Don’t fucking talk to me.”

“As if I was supposed to know you’d-”

Rhys stopped in his advances down the hall, spinning and bearing down on Jack like a mountain, tears in his eyes.

“As if you didn’t _know_ , Jack!” he screamed, pushing Jack hard at the shoulders and shoving him up against the wall. “As if you didn’t know what it was like in there!”

Jack sighed, biting his lip. He grabbed Rhys’s shoulders and held him tightly, steadying the younger man. “You needed to see the shit, Rhys! You needed to be shown what it was really like to work high up! It sucks! That is my _life_!” Jack jammed a finger in the direction of the boardroom. “Get over it because it does _not_ mean you are bad at your job.”

“Shit.” Rhys stepped away with wild eyes, running his hands through his hair. “Shit, I’ve never been so humiliated in my entire life.”

Jack laughed in spite of himself. “Welcome to the shitshow that is top level Hyperion! Where you never have a new idea and you feel absolutely worthless all the goddamned day! Why do you think I hated you when you first came into my office?! Right from the get go, you acted like you knew what the job entailed. You acted like you _knew_.”

It was Rhys’s turn to laugh now. “Ha! Oh man, that is _rich_ coming from you.” Rhys was on top of him again, whacking him hard on the arm. “You hated _me_? You hated _me_?!” Jack was against the wall again, Rhys so close that their fast breaths intermingled. “Mr. Lawrence,” he spat, “you acted just like Tassiter when you first met me.”

Taken aback, Jack blinked. No he hadn’t. He hadn’t acted like one of those assholes, he hadn’t-

“You are just like them. You’re a perfect fit in this shitshow.” Rhys splayed his hands out wide, grinning maniacally. He backed away slowly, smile dropping with each heavy word that fell from his mouth. “You belong here, Jack Lawrence.”

With that, Rhys stalked out of the door.

Jack was left alone.

*

When Rhys did not turn up to work the following day, Jack mentally prepared the speech he would deliver to Tassiter. It was only when Rhys hadn’t turned up for a few days that Jack called the Intern Program and found out he was still signed on to his department.

It only took a small amount of digging around for Jack to find out where Rhys lived. In no time, he was outside the apartment, knocking furiously. He was very surprised when a short bespectacled man opened the door.

“Can I help you?” he asked, frowning.

Jack licked his lips. “I’m looking for Rhys.”

The short man stiffened. “You’re not... _Jack_ , _are_ you?”

“The one and only.”

The short man threw his head back and laughed. “Okay, no. Bye! Fuck you!”

Jack caught the closing door, fighting against it closing in his face. The other guy was surprisingly strong.

“Hell, do you work out?”

“Only every other day,” the man groaned through a strained throat. “Now get lost! He doesn’t want to see you.”

Jack pushed as hard as he could. “Well-I-want-to-see-him!” Using all his might, he managed to force his way into the apartment, unintentionally knocking the other man down in the process.

“Well, I’m Vaughn,” the small man said picking himself up from the ground. “Screw you two, I’m gonna leave and go back to work! The place I left because my best friend is a crazy person! _Bye!_ ”

Jack wasn’t really paying attention, to be honest. He stormed through to what he assumed was one of the bedrooms and hit the jackpot. There was Rhys, sitting cross-legged on the bed with his arms folded and a face like thunder. He had clearly been waiting for Jack to open the door. He was quite the picture: extremely grumpy and quite obviously sleep-deprived. Jack frowned.

“Get the fuck up, Rhys.”

A beat. “ _No._ ”

“You have to come to work, kiddo. Tassiter will _kill_ you if you don’t come in.”

Something sinister flashed across Rhys’s face. A smirk played on his lips. “Not before I kill him first.”

“Okay yes, wouldn’t that be lovely,” Jack pandered, sitting down on the edge of the bed and patting Rhys’s thigh. “We’d all love to see him strung up by his nuts. Come on, Rhys. Let’s go.”

Rhys pulled his knees to his chest and nestled his face into his folded arms, watching Jack carefully. He seemed to be thinking about something, eyebrows furrowing every so often. Jack stared right back, tilting his head to the side curiously.

“Don’t hurt yourself with all that thinking.” He patted Rhys’s head and offered him a wolfish grin. Rhys did not smile.

“Jack.”

“Yes Rhys.”

Rhys rolled his lip under his teeth, leaning from side to side and gulping back the words he was clearly trying to say.

“You... _hate_ Tassiter, right?”

“With every inch of my soul. Why?”

The kid shifted, dropping his knees and sucking in breath. “You thought I needed to be brought down a peg. I get that. I didn’t have a clue what it was like to work so closely with the CEO. But this guy? He’s the one who needs to be brought down to size.” Rhys glanced left and right, as if someone might overhear their conversation. “I’ve heard rumours. Rumours that if _true_ could bring Tassiter down for good.” Okay. He had Jack’s full attention. He nodded. A quick smile dashed across Rhys’s lips and all of a sudden he had shifted from grumpy Rhys to over-excitable Rhys. “So over the last few days I’ve been hacking certain systems around Helios, trying to find dirt on the guy. Anything that could destroy him. Money laundering, cover ups... _anything._ Then I find something on some random site that _implies_ Tassiter is doing some dodgy dealing with Jakobs.”

Jack lifted his legs onto the bed, crossing them so he could sit directly opposite Rhys. “There’s always something dodgy going on, Rhys.”  
Rhys’s eyes were wild with excitement. “No but this is something big. Something that could displace the man and leave room for someone else to take the stand as CEO. Anything is better than him. If we can expose him…”

“Rhys, what you’re suggesting his career suicide. No, scratch that. Death. We would literally be thrown out of an airlock, maybe tortured beforehand.” Jack grabbed at Rhys’s flailing hands, stilling them. “Anyway, the only way we might find out whether or not this is true is to hack into...into…”

“Tassiter’s computer.”

“Tassiter’s _computer_. Exactly! That’s in his _office_ , under lock and _key_.”

Rhys’s hands went to flail again, but Jack’s firm grip kept him steady. “Next Saturday.”

“Next Saturday?”

“What is happening next Saturday?”

“Uhhh…”

“The Masquerade Ball! Tassiter and the board are always part of the celebrations every single year. It’s our one shot to break into his office.”

“Oh my god, Rhys.” Jack was frustrated now. “That’s impossible. Stop it, you sound like a crazy person. Focus on me.” Jack grabbed his chin and stared him hard in the eyes. “We can’t get in and we won’t even try because we would _die_.”

“Oh Jack, live a little. Haven’t you dreamed of Tassiter getting crushed once and for all? Don’t you wish for the day when you can walk into the boardroom and get applause for your amazing ideas? He’s a bully.” Rhys leant in close. “Bullies deserve punishment.”

The words sent shudders down Jack’s spine. He felt a strange heat pool towards his crotch but forced his mind to ignore what was happening down below.

“And you think you have a way into his office?”

Rhys clicked his tongue and flashed a security key card between his fingers. “Perks of having a cute ass and a wicked little mouth.”

There was no denying that Jack almost had a full on boner by this point. “Did you-”

Sliding his tongue across his top lip, Rhys placed a hand on Jack’s thigh and dug his thumb in deep. He hadn’t noticed the bulge yet but right now part of Jack hoped he would.

“Oh yes. Till he was as clean as a whistle.”

Jack swallowed around a lump in his throat. Rhys’s eyes flickered to his neck before meeting his hooded gaze once again.

“Be my date to the ball, Jackie?” Another dig of his thumb. Jack didn’t know what to do with himself. In less than twenty minutes, Rhys had managed to hook, line and sinker the programmer. He wanted nothing more than to bear witness to what that ‘wicked little mouth’ could do.

“Fuck yes,” he muttered, closing his eyes.. “Let’s drag this CEO through hell and back, baby.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come find me at loki-dokey.tumblr.com <3


	3. Plans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Your kudos, comments and messages make this all worthwhile. 
> 
> Thank you so much and thank you once again to my gorgeous beta @alexanderbxne on tumblr! They have some lovely BL rhack fic for you to sink your teeth into if you head to their AO3 which is @BigBWolf <3

The week passed by slowly with the anticipation of what was to come. Jack and Rhys spent what they had of their spare time meticulously planning how the evening was going to play out. Jack loved what a scheming little shit Rhys was and how well he thought through every detail. Most of the time, Jack simply sat back, listening to Rhys rattle on about how things were going to go and what Jack was going to be doing. However, it got to a point later in the week when Jack grabbed at Rhys’s hand as he gestured his way through his speech to get the younger man’s attention. Rhys jumped a little at the unexpected contact, gazing down at it with widened eyes before blinking and looking Jack in the eyes.

“Come on, kiddo,” Jack said around a yawn, collapsing into the cushions of the couch. “If we get too caught up with details, it’ll become a far more difficult situation than it’s already set to be.” Rhys went a little red, placing his hands in his lap. Jack grinned and ruffled his hair which had deflated from its usual perfection into a strangely adorable mess.

_What the fuck Jack, Rhys isn’t adorable. Rhys is a prick. Remember?_

“Rhys, don’t sweat it. You’ve done a great job planning this whole...” It was Jack’s turn to wave his hands about, “...charade. I’m impressed.”

“Well,” Rhys replied, smiling widely. “We’ll just have to pray it goes to plan. Otherwise, ya know...” He proceeded to imitate being cut across the throat and Jack balked, shoving him on the shoulder. Rhys cackled and clambered to his feet as he checked his watch. “Shit, it’s really late.”

Jack’s eyes were bleary and his head was swimming. Glancing at his own watch, he wasn’t surprised to find it was two in the morning.

“I’d better head off,” he muttered, standing. Rhys was quick to stand also, squaring up to Jack and staring at him with large, round, glassy eyes.

A beat. “Why don’t you stay?”

This caught Jack off guard. A breath caught in his throat; was Rhys implying-

“I mean, our couch is perfectly comfortable.” Jack let out the breath. Rhys ran a hand along the arm of the chair, allowing his fingertips to trail off the end. “You’d be more than welcome.”

“I...uh...um...” Jack bit his lip, eyeing the couch. He was trying to keep his eyes off of Rhys mainly, because right now with his loose tee, tousled hair and what could only be called booty shorts, Jack might just make some wrong, tired decision that he would only live to regret in the morning. “That’s nice, Rhys, really. But I should go.”

And with that he went. Out of the door with barely a goodbye in his wake. Whilst bad decisions were his forte, Jack’s life was already loud enough.

*

The night of the Masquerade Ball eventually rolled around. Now, Jack never got nervous. Never.

But as he stood outside Rhys’s door, fist raised to knock, he used his other hand to adjust his collar and straighten his tie. He’d barely landed his fist on the door twice when it swung open, Vaughn forcefully grinning up at him.

“Oh hey, Jack! So _great_ to see you.”

Jack frowned down at him, still fussing with his collar as he walked inside the apartment.

“Rhys around?”

Vaughn shut the door. “Yeah yeah. Asshole takes like, ninety years to get ready for a date.”

“...It’s not a date.”

The short man raised his eyebrows and laughed. “Heh. Okay. Whatever you say, _Jack._ ”

The way his name rolled off of Vaughn’s tongue was confusing and Jack went to ask what his problem was when Rhys appeared from his bedroom door. He was dressed in a beautiful navy suit which perfectly fit him in _every_ way. His mask was also blue, with intricate detail and gold trimming. Through the eye holes, his focus was very much on Jack.

“I-uh...” Jack rubbed the back of his neck. “You look good, Rhys.”

Rhys obviously noticed the use of his actual name, smirking at the fact before allowing his gaze to drag from Jack’s shoes to his eyes. Wow, Jack could _literally_ fuck him then and there.  “As do _you_ , _handsome_ Jack.”

“Wow. I’m just going to leave.” Vaughn’s voice appeared at the back of Jack’s mind but he was too lost in how fantastic Rhys looked to really hear him.

“You ready?” Rhys’s words brought Jack out of his stupor. Suddenly, Rhys was very close and Jack could easily just – “Like I’ve said all week...” Rhys slid his fingers up Jack’s tie, tightening it gently when he reached the collar. His gaze flickered up from under his lashes which did terrible things to Jack. “...You don’t have to do this with me.”

Without a thought, Jack ran his hands up Rhys’s arms, smiling when he stopped at his pretty little neck. “And how would you ever do this without _me_ , Rhysie? We’re a team, you and I.”

A pink tinge found its way onto Rhys’s cheeks and he beamed, brushing Jack’s shoulders down and buttoning his waistcoat. Jack shivered.

“Oh Jack. That we are.”

*

The party was in full swing when they arrived. Jack observed Rhys play coy and cutesy in front of higher-ups that they passed, blushing at all the right times and playing with his hands to make conversations as awkward as possible. Yet, beneath it all, Jack knew exactly what game the boy was playing and he _loved_ it. He couldn’t get enough. Being around Rhys was goddamn intoxicating.

“Yes, the internship is going very well, Mr. Seach.  Thank you for notifying me about the position.” The wavering voice. The hand passing across the back of his neck.

Jack couldn’t _not_ fuck him.

*

Rhys leant against the bar, swirling a finger over the top of his martini glass. His eyes were fixed on Tassiter, who was across the room and surrounded by women pawing and pandering at him.

“Has anything ever made you want to throw up in your mouth more?” Jack asked, knocking back a shot of tequila and wiping his mouth across the back of his sleeve. It had been his only drink of the night, it would _be_ his only drink of the night, but god did he need more. Rhys paused in his motions, only his eyes flicking to Jack.

“Absolutely nothing.” A sip of martini. “Do you think he’s any good in bed?”

“I bet you his asshole attitude is to make up for his tiny dick.” The older man wiggled his pinky, causing Rhys to giggle. “Bet he’s never pleased a woman in his life.”

Cackling, Rhys checked his watch. Jack could have come in his pants when the kid’s face warped from amused to serious.

“We have to go.”

*

Despite the fact that it was only a taser, the gun felt extremely heavy in the waistband of Jack’s pants. He had never done anything like this before in his life and he was trying very hard to ignore the part of his brain telling him to stop following that crazy, lanky idiot through the hallways towards Tassiter’s office. Oblivious security ambled by in pairs, most of them grumbling about not being able to attend the party. Jack adjusted his mask and matched Rhys’s pace which was passable as a perfectly casual stroll.

“Have you done this before?” Jack hissed through the side of his mouth as they entered the elevator.  The doors closed and Rhys leant against the mirrored wall, folding his arms in the process.

“I was born and raised on Pandora. This wouldn’t be the first time I’ve had to uh... _sneak around_.” He threw Jack a wink as it was clear the information had been news to him. Rhys? A native Pandoran? Jack eyes bulged in their sockets.

“But...I thought...I mean I _guessed_ you were from an Eden or somewhere like that. You don’t seem like...one of them.” His eyes glanced down, gesturing at the planet that turned below them.

Rhys laughed and stepped across the elevator, closing the distance between them. He straightened Jack’s mask.

“We Pandoran’s come in many shapes and sizes. I dreamed of the big time; of money and power.” His lips curled around the words beautifully and suddenly the elevator was getting extremely hot. Jack hooked a finger into his collar and pulled gently, trying his best to circulate some air under his shirt. “I thought I’d do it the right way. Work my way up to the top the way a good working boy should. So I could feel like I _earned_ it. But after what that son of a bitch did to me in that board room?” He gripped Jack’s lapels and pulled him in close. His lips brushed against Jack’s cheek as they made their way to his ear. “I’m _so_ tired of being a good boy.”

“ _Fuck_ ,” Jack swore as he turned them around forcefully, shoving Rhys against the elevator wall and kissing him hard.  Rhys was more than happy to comply, gripping at Jack’s shoulders before sliding his hands up to fist into his hair. Jack barely heard the elevator doors ping open.

“Holy shit, do you they know what floor they’re on?” A gruff, echoing voice drew Jack away from Rhys to gaze out of the open doors and down the hallway at two security guards storming down from Tassiter’s office doors. Rhys didn’t seem phased, however.

“Oh my goodness! Sorry, gentlemen!” *hic* “We didn’t even realise! Must’ve...” He giggled, pointing in the general direction of the elevator buttons, *hic* “...leant against something when we...” Rhys glanced at Jack who was stunned to silence. Rhys gave him a “look” and suddenly Jack forced himself to grin and grab Rhys around the waist.

The guards looked at one another, sighing. “Yeah well, as long as you just-” Both fell to the floor simultaneously, the taser trails leading from their chests right back to the guns Jack and Rhys had both produced. Jack didn’t move from the elevator as Rhys stepped out and over the men, bending down to place pills in each of their mouths. He stood, brushing off his hands.

“There. That should keep them down for a few hours. Plenty of time to get our information.”

Jack said nothing. Had Rhys used him as a distraction? Had Rhys just...? As a...?

Spinning on his heel, Rhys met Jack’s gaze with a sparkle in his eye and smirked. “Come on, handsome Jack. Let’s burn this son of a bitch to the ground.”

It took Jack a while to gain focus. By the time he did, he noticed that Rhys had manually dragged him down the hallway to Tassiter’s front door. Jack blinked as Rhys produced the key card and slid it through the scanner. The doors opened with a click.

“You know when _I’m_ CEO, I’m gonna have one hell of a security system,” he announced as he slipped inside, pulling Jack by the hand in after him.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come and discuss Slytherin!Rhys with me @loki-dokey on tumblr ;)


	4. Break-In

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yaaaaaas I have finally planned out exactly how I want this story to go. I am thoroughly enjoying writing this and I love love LOVE all of your supportive comments. Characterisation is something every fanfic writer prays they get right and your lovely messages about how I write my characters make my day :D 
> 
> ~ Enjoy ~

Never once had Jack gotten over what a beautiful office Tassiter had. It was undeservedly magnificent for the vile, disgusting man that Tassiter was and by laying his eyes on the office again, Jack was more than ready to uproot the bastard once and for all. His gaze drifted from the golden columns and arches to Rhys, who was already tapping away at the CEO’s computer. Yet to _do_ the “uprooting”, he had to work with _this_ guy, who had used him as a distraction; a distraction they hadn’t even discussed in their planning.  A glorious distraction that had left Jack with a hole in his chest for some unknown reason. It had hurt Jack in ways he wasn’t sure how to express.  They were _supposed_ to have been looking like they were in a drunken fist fight that the guards were going to have to break up.

But Rhys just had to go and change everything. He just had to push Jack just over the edge. Enough to make him break after every little light touch and sigh and sideways glance that Rhys had given him over the week.

“Will you actually do something?” sharply hissed the man in question, masked eyes not leaving the screen. “We don’t have long here and you doing nothing isn’t helping anyone.”

With a huff and a sigh, Jack begrudgingly stepped up to the desk on the risen platform and leant down beside Rhys to open the drawers there. Stacks and stacks of old paperwork dating back to the beginning of the year were in one drawer, but nothing on Jakobs or any other weapons manufacturer that caused any concern. Getting tired of sitting on his knees, Jack resorted to falling back onto his ass and crossing his legs, eyes trawling the papers for something. _Anything._

“When _I’m_ CEO,” he muttered eventually, his anger at Rhys biting into his words, “I’m going to have a personal assistant who actually files all my damned shit.”

Rhys merely offered him a crafty smile in return, then allowed his mouth to droop back into a grimace as he squinted at the screen.

“This computer’s full of junk too. I can barely find my way around. He _definitely_ needs a PA.”

Jack didn’t reply; he didn’t particularly want to speak to Rhys right now. He was annoyed at himself that he’d even opened his damned mouth. Sliding open another drawer, he picked through some more papers but so far it didn’t seem that they would find anything. Minutes of silence between them passed, only broken by the tapping of Rhys’s fingers across the keyboard and of Jack shuffling papers. There was an unquestionable awkwardness in the air that crept its way through Jack’s skin and into his veins, making him shudder. Part of him just wanted to walk out and leave Rhys to his probable demise of being caught by Tassiter’s henchmen.

“Oh my god, I have something...I have something!” Rhys’s excitable voice broke through their silence and Jack was instantly on his feet. _No,_ he thought to himself, taking down the CEO was far more important than his feelings towards the asshole intern. “Here!” Rhys pointed at the screen. “Look at this. There’s an email correspondence between Jakobs and Hyperion. Jakobs has sent Hyperion five hundred boxes of weaponry that they originally planned to dispose of...what...that’s...why would they do that?”

It certainly didn’t make any sense. Jack read through the emails over Rhys’s shoulder but he couldn’t put the pieces together either.

“Why would they buy shitty, useless guns off of Jakobs? What’s that going to do but give Jakobs Hyperion’s money?” It was only as he spoke that he noticed how close his mouth was to Rhys’s. How easily he could just tilt the kid’s head and – and – and snap his _goddamn_ neck for being such a _dick_.

“I don’t...it...it doesn’t make any _sense_...Here, look. I’ll download what I can.” He turned his head to catch Jack’s eye. “We can try to figure this all out back at my place.” Holding out his cybernetic hand, it lit up and began downloading. Jack’s mouth went dry and it was almost as if time stood still whilst the little percentage number began rising.

“What the hell is this?!” came a distant, echoing voice.

“Shit.” Someone had found the guards. Jack felt himself go cold as he gripped at Rhys’s shoulder. “We have to go, kiddo.”

“...No! Just a few more minutes! I’ve almost got it all.”

“Rhys, we don’t _have_ minutes!” Hurried footsteps in the hallway. _“Rhys!”_

Grabbing the stubborn intern around the waist, Jack dragged him over to the large air vent cover. This had been the plan. Hear a noise, get to the vents. He yanked it off and shoved Rhys inside, pushing him deep enough into it that they wouldn’t be seen if someone were to peer through the gaps of the cover that Jack quickly attached back in place.  Crawling around the corner to Rhys, he slapped his hand over his opening mouth, Rhys’s words getting lost against his palm. Locking his hand in place, Jack glared at Rhys who glared right back. Angry tears formed in the corners of Rhys’s eyes. Jack _got_ it. He was also extremely disappointed that they hadn’t managed to download the information. It meant that Tassiter was still untouchable. It meant that Jack and Rhys were still under the man’s thumb and scrutiny.

Neither of them liked the idea of that at all.

*

Rhys almost smashed the door down on the way into his apartment.  Thankfully, Vaughn was nowhere to be seen or he would most definitely be asking a lot of questions. The kid stalked inside, Jack quietly following. Rhys walked right through to his bedroom, Jack only stilling in the doorway when he realised what room he would be entering. Rhys grunted and beckoned him in from new position of having his head buried in the pillows.

“Well, that went fucking shit,” Jack grumbled, perching himself on the end of the bed. He placed his face in his hands and rubbed at his eyes with his palms. “So much for taking down Tassiter.”

“Why did they have to come in right then?!” Rhys shrieked into the bed sheets. “Why couldn’t they have just, I don’t know, _not_ come in right then?” Following this, he began spieling incoherent mumbling, clenching and unclenching his fists on various occasions throughout his chatter.

“Anyway,” Jack eventually announced, standing. He was so done. “I think I’m gonna...go. Sorry it didn’t work out.”

And he wasn’t just talking about the break-in.

Rhys shifted and sat up in bed, staring at Jack in what appeared to be confusion. “So that’s it? You’re just going to leave?”

Jack shrugged, detached. “Yep.”

Visibly hurt, Rhys also stood and squared up to Jack. He was fractionally taller, only by millimetres, but Jack found himself having to – annoyingly – look up at the intern.

“So you liked the feisty Pandoran boy until he couldn’t put out for you? Until he couldn’t _provide_ what you hoped he could provide.” He stepped closer into Jack’s space, jabbing a finger at him. “You’re a real piece of work, Lawrence.”

Confusion took its turn on Jack then. “What the hell? You were the one who kissed me as a distraction! We hadn’t even planned for that? That was a dick move and you know it. Fuck you.”

As Jack spoke, Rhys’s eyebrows rose and fell as he tried to take on board what Jack was saying. A look of realisation dawned on him.

“You kissed _me_ , you goddamned moron,” Rhys spat, taking another step. There grew a strange, out-of-place smirk on his lips.  “I had to improvise.” He waved his hands in the air. “You kissed me as we got to Tassiter’s floor. I didn’t even realise we were there till the last minute and by _then_ it was too late to go from kissing in front of guards to full on fist-fighting in front of them. You _ass_ ,” he laughed, shaking his head. “I kissed you right back, didn’t I?”

“I...you...you didn’t...what?”

“Oh my _freaking god_.” Rolling his eyes, Rhys threw his arms around Jack’s shoulders, capturing his mouth with his own. Jack stumbled back at the sudden force of it all but soon found himself wrapping his arms around Rhys’s waist and tugging him flush against his chest. “You really think,” Rhys breathed, “that I’d kiss you back and not mean it, Jack Lawrence?” He pulled away, keeping his arms locked tight around Jack’s neck. “Hmm?”

“Well, see, I never know with you, pumpkin.” Rhys cackled as he squeezed his sides. “You’re a hard one to pin down.” He leant in and pressed his mouth against Rhys’s once again, laying him back down on the bed as he did so. “Oh, maybe _not_ so hard to pin down though?”

Jack’s hands slid up and clutched Rhys’s wrists above his head. Rhys grinned.

“I can be easy to pin if I want to be.” He licked across his lips and god, Jack wanted to taste that tongue again. He leant in but Rhys moved his head, smiling.

“We should get back to the party. It’ll cover our asses and give us an alibi if anyone asks where we were.”

Jack resumed his previous ambitions, this time swirling his tongue down Rhys’s neck. Finally, _finally_ he was able to touch that pretty little neck of his. “Can’t an alibi be that I was fucking you into next week?”

This obviously caught Rhys off guard. A deep red blush pooled onto his lightly freckled cheeks and his mouth formed an ‘o’ shape. Jack beamed and kissed him quick before he could protest.

“Jack! Jack. Oh my god, okay.” Rhys grabbed Jack’s shoulders and pushed him up. “However... _much_ I’d love you to do... _that_...We’re better off getting some selfies snapped and some people talked to at the party. Then...then we can come back and...do that thing...” Rhys looked away, biting his lip. “...That thing you said...we could do...”

Oh, Jack finally had him. He had Rhys nervous and awkward and _under_ him. The kid had a point, there was no doubt about that. Sure, Jack would go along with it. But it didn’t mean Jack couldn’t be disappointed.

“Aw, boo you, Rhysie.” He pouted dramatically and Rhys giggled, biting his lip again. “Oh babe, don’t do that. The lip thing you do won’t make me move out of this room any faster.”

“Lip thing I do?”

Jack didn’t have to answer with words. He swooped down and caught Rhys’s bottom lip between his teeth, applying just enough pressure for Rhys to squeak beneath him. Chortling, Jack rolled off the bed and stood, looking back at Rhys who looked spent already. He hadn’t even been fucked yet and he looked like he was falling apart. His hair was a mess and his face was red.

And there was an enormous boner pushing against his suit pants.

Not that there wasn’t an enormous boner pushing against _Jack’s_ suit pants.

Because there totally was.

Rhys rubbed his neck as he sat up, biting his lip _again._ Jack could’ve smacked him. He needed that pretty little mouth around his dick pronto.

But no, they had to _waltz_ back into that godforsaken party as if neither of them had broken into Harold Tassiter’s office only minutes before.

 _Boy, this is going to be fun,_ Jack thought.

*

The party was still going strong when they arrived at the front door after a change in attire.  They had to be careful in case anyone had watched security footage. Luckily, Rhys had had two spare masks (and a strange collection of dressing up clothes amongst other things that Rhys hadn’t allowed Jack to see) so they looked somewhat transformed from their previous get up.  Rhys now sported a wonderfully fitting light grey suit with a purple tie.  Jack had dashed back to his to change into his own navy suit. He left the collar of his shirt rather open, which Rhys had commented on whilst rubbing his neck again.

Rhys liked the open collar, Jack noted decidedly.

As they approached the bar, it was clear that the atmosphere in the air had shifted somewhat. Whispers passed about Tassiter leaving the party suddenly and rumours had clearly already begun to descend upon the Helios population.  Jack did his best to ignore them as he ordered half a dozen tequila shots. Rhys eyed him warily.

“Oh come on, it’s time to get this party started. Isn’t it?”

The tequilas arrived and Jack placed three shots in front of Rhys. He picked one up gingerly and sniffed at it. Jack sprinkled some salt on the back of their hands.

“All three. As quick as you can, kiddo. Think you can handle it?”

That was all it took for nervous Rhys to dissolve into the Rhys that could wrap Jack around his finger. The Rhys that could put Jack in his place with a mere look. The Rhys that Jack could _fuck into next week._

“Bite me, Lawrence,” was all Rhys said before he knocked back one shot. Jack scrambled to grab his, almost knocking it down in the process, and gulped the liquid down. They demolished the next two, Rhys spilling a little down his face that Jack leant in to lick off. This had Rhys back to his babbling, gushing ways and Jack thoroughly enjoyed observing him this way.

“Oooh I love this song,” Rhys announced twenty minutes later, leaning into Vaughn whom they had found with Rhys’s friend Yvette. They had both been slurring and giggling and taking selfies, so Rhys had found people on mutual terms with him. Jack had also noted, by this point, that Rhys was a lightweight. The cosmopolitan in his hand swished about as he bopped along to the music. Jack took a sip of his own drink before placing it on the table and grabbing the kid’s wrist.

“Come on then, lanky legs, let’s go dance.”

*

“I loooooooved dancing with you tonight, Jackie,” Rhys cooed, pressing most of his bodyweight on Jack’s arm as the older man assisted him in getting back to his apartment. Jack was also pretty damned drunk, but Rhys was out of it. “Didn’t have such a good time breaking into Tassiter’s off-”

Jack had him up against the wall, hand firmly over his mouth. The look he gave Rhys must have sunken deep into his alcohol-soaked brain because he giggled and pushed Jack out of the way to shush himself.

“You’re a mess,” Jack sighed, pulling the intern along.

After a good fifteen minutes of Rhys giggling, threatening to puke and finding his reflection in the windows fascinating, they made it back to Rhys’s place. Jack dug about in the kid’s pocket for his keys and had him in bed as quickly as he could.

“Get undressed,” he ordered before entering the kitchen and seeking out a bucket. He found one under the sink and placed it next to Rhys’s bedside. “Hey.” He shook Rhys into the land of the living. “There’s a bucket here if you feel the need to throw your guts up.” Running a finger down Rhys’s face, he smirked. “I’m going to have to train you up in the art of hard drinking if this is going to be a thing.”

Rhys smiled and grabbed Jack’s hand. “It _is_ going to be a thing. I like you a lot. You’re my favourite.”

It was Jack’s turn to blush now.

“You’re _so_ handsome. _Handsome_ Jack.” Rhys stroked Jack’s cheek. “ _My_ handsome programmer Jack. Sooooooo handsome with your _handsome face_...”

“Rhys, shut up.” Nevertheless, Jack chuckled. He frowned, however, when he noticed that Rhys was still fully clothed. “Goddamnit, cupcake. Why do you do this to me?" He proceeded in removing Rhys’s pants and shirt whilst the kid snored, already fast asleep. Jack tugged off his socks and kissed him lightly on the lips before slipping out, a feeling he’d not felt before settling in the place of a hole that had closed in his chest.  


	5. A New Position

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that it's been a while, chums! I have this entire thing pretty much planned out so fear not, it should get completed within a few months! I plan for it to be long, so sit back and enjoy the ride ;-)

When Jack awoke the following morning, he was unsurprised to find nothing from Rhys on his ECHO. It was barely nine; Jack could only assume that Rhys was experiencing the worst hangover of his life. Grinning, he typed ‘ _Hope the bucket came in handy’_ before sighing, stretching and sitting up in bed.  Angel groaned from beside him, grabbing the loose sheets and curling them tightly around herself. She must have clambered in at some point – she’d never liked it when Jack was late home. The seven-year-old grumbled again before blinking up at her father with sleep-ridden eyes.

“Mornin’ Daddy.”

“Hey there, baby girl,” Jack replied as he ran a hand through her plait. “Why didn’t you let your hair down last night?”

Angel yawned. “I wanted it to be curly for today. I like curly. One of the ladies in a magazine I read yesterday had it all beautiful and wavy.” She smiled widely and giggled as Jack pinched her cheek.

“You’re beautiful with or without curls. Now, how’s about some pancakes?”

The expression on Angel’s face said that she liked the sound of that.

*

Rhys did not reply to his message until five.  By this point, Jack and Angel had made pancakes, watched a movie, prepared, cooked and eaten a huge dinner and were curling up on the couch to watch another movie when Jack’s ECHO bleeped.

_R: I hate everything._

Cackling to himself, Jack tapped his reply.

_J: I can imagine._

_R: Why did you let me drink so much?! Asshole!_

_J: ....Because I’m not your freaking mother? Asshole?_

_R: Yeah...well....I’m not usually that bad. I usually handle my alcohol a lot better xxx_

Jack was in the process of replying when his ECHO bleeped again.

_R: Vaughn says I’m not allowed to lie to you so that was a lie. I never handle alcohol well._

_J: Vaughn says? Sounds like Vaughn’s your mother, cupcake. Also, why’s Vaughn reading your messages?_

_R: He’s my best friend. He knows all of my dirty secrets._

Jack shifted.

_J: And what kind of dirty secrets are those?_

When Rhys didn’t reply for a while, Jack took it upon himself to break the silence.

_J: Does one of those secrets involve what you know I’m going to do to you on my desk tomorrow morning? ;)_

_R: Um....maybe? ;) x_

_J: I bet it does. Hey kitten, I gotta get on with my Sunday. You know it’s mine and Angel’s special day. Can’t keep sexting you all evening. Catch ya tomorrow._

_R: Oh yeah! Sure. See you then ;) xxxxxxx_

*

Rhys swore beautifully as Jack bit down hard on his collar bone.  The sound of his ragged breaths urged Jack on even more, causing him to accidentally (but also not accidentally) rip a few buttons open on Rhys’s shirt.

“Ah _fuck_ , fuck you _._ ”

Jack didn’t apologise. He merely continued his ministrations, fingers dragging down the skin of Rhys’s torso before his fingertips dipped below his waistband. Rhys buckled slightly at the sensitive touch, bracing his hands on Jack’s shoulders and moaning a little. Jack ate it up, moving his lips to Rhys’s own and devouring each little moan he drew out as his hands wrestled with the zipper on Rhys’s pants. Rhys’s own hands were trying hard to find a place to settle, moving from Jack’s shoulders to his neck to his hips and back again. Jack’s name slid off of his tongue as the older man slipped his hand into his boxers, getting a firm grasp on his hard cock before stroking him furiously. Rhys whined and pressed his mouth firmly against Jack’s shoulder. Jack was very pleased with what his hand had found; he gave it a gentle squeeze and Rhys cried out, biting down.

“Oh kitten, I wish I could spread you out across my desk but Tassiter’s doing a walk-around today. He expects to see hard workers.”

“Work hard on _me_ ,” whimpered Rhys, kissing Jack’s neck. “We still have five minutes until we’re supposed to start work anyway.”

Jack chuckled, giving Rhys another squeeze before pulling his hand out and kissing him lightly. “Trust me, I’ll work hard on you later. After...uh...dinner?” Jack felt himself go hot. He rubbed his arm. “After dinner tonight? With me? If you want?”

Rhys blushed and offered him a small smile. “Oh Jack, I’d love that.”

*

The day dragged on.  Eventually, at midday, Tassiter showed up with his cronies and began nit-picking every little issue he could find.  He seemed on edge, which was unsurprising after what had happened in his office only a few days prior.  He was scribbling notes, snapping harsh words at Jack who remained silent at his desk, arms folded.  His gaze slid over to Rhys, who was strangely focused on Tassiter.

“Um...sir?”

Tassiter span around on his heel, bearing down on Rhys who did his best not to cower back in his seat.  Jack’s heart rate sped up a little – what the fuck was Rhys doing?

“What do you want, intern?” Tassiter hissed, crossing something off in his notebook. “I’m a very busy man.”

“Yes of course, sir. That’s what I wanted to discuss.” Rhys straightened his tie, keeping Tassiter’s gaze. “You seem far too busy to be taking your own notes. Why don’t I take them for you for the rest of the day? Surely that would relieve you of some stress.”

Jack stopped breathing. It appeared Tassiter had too, as he continued to stare at Rhys as though he had dropped some sort of bombshell.  It was clearly something he hadn’t been expecting to hear.  Moments of silence passed, with the security guards shuffling uneasily, before Tassiter straightened and coughed. He thrust the notebook into Rhys’s hands, who stood and smiled that same fake smile that Jack had seen so often before.

“You write down everything I say. Do you understand me?”

“Perfectly, sir.”

Tassiter turned to Jack, who was still stunned and lost. “You’ll have your intern returned to you tomorrow, John. Hopefully in one piece, if he doesn’t fuck up.” With that, Tassiter stalked out of the office. The cronies trailed quickly behind and Rhys sidled over to Jack’s desk.

“I’ll see you tonight, okay? I’ll explain everything then.” He blew Jack a kiss before disappearing out of the door. Now alone, Jack slumped back, mind racing.

What had Rhys gotten himself into?

*

The restaurant was buzzing, just the way Jack liked it. He loved the Gorgon bar – he treated himself and Angel to it on very rare occasions as it was the priciest joint on Helios.  Executives, board members and high-class clientele laughed and chatted over ridiculously expensive bottles of champagne and cheeses. Whilst the people weren’t Jack’s favourite, he couldn’t fault the quality of the food and the ambience of the place.

He and Rhys had agreed to meet at half seven, and as his watched ticked ever closer to eight, Jack became increasingly antsy. The waiter who refilled his wine eyed him cautiously, but Jack threw him a snarl that suggested he got lost as quickly as possible. Jack was not going to be stood up by Rhys.  He absolutely was _not_.  Swilling his red wine around in the glass, he scowled at anyone who dared look in his direction.

“Hey!” came a breathy voice from behind him. Rhys appeared, flustered and smiley, dropping into the chair beside Jack and grabbing his hands tightly. “I’m so so so _so_ sorry I’m late.”

Jack frowned. “Yeah. Making me look like a loser over here on my own.”

Rhys giggled and pressed his lips to Jack’s cheek. He was basically jumping in his seat, cheeks red and eyes glassy.

“What is it?”

Rather than reply, Rhys called over the waiter. “A bottle of your most average champagne!” he trilled flamboyantly, as though he’d just ordered the most extravagant bottle on the menu. He annoyingly refused to tell Jack anything until a flute was in his hand.

“....Guess what.”

Jack rolled his eyes, so enraged with the boy that he could throttle him. “ _What?_ ”

Rhys beamed. He sat up straight. “You are now looking at the CEO’s new personal assistant.”

Choking on his sip of champagne, Jack felt a little come out of his nose as he coughed and spluttered in disbelief.

“Wh....wh...what? Why would you want that? Rhys, what the-”

A finger fell upon his lips, silencing him. Rhys took a long sip of his drink.

“Remember when we were talking about how Tassiter needed a PA? Well, throughout today I’d coincidentally been thinking about how close a PA could get to all the dirt on Tassiter. How _quickly_ they could bring him down if they wanted to.”

Rhys took another sip of champagne as he waited for realisation to dawn on Jack. It took him a few minutes, but suddenly Jack’s eyes blew wide and his jaw fell open.

Of course. It made so much sense. Rhys had seen the opportunity to show Tassiter what he’d been missing.  He’d only gone and gotten the very job they’d thought Tassiter needed.

The very job that, as Rhys had put it, could bring Tassiter down just like they’d planned to do in the first place.  Filled with joy and a sense of awe at the man grinning before him, Jack grabbed the kid’s shoulders and pulled him in for a kiss.

“You’re a goddamn genius, babe,” he breathed, ignoring the waiter who had chosen quite the wrong moment to take their food order.

Rhys winked and kissed Jack again. The taste of champagne filled Jack’s mouth and he drank it up, loving the way Rhys’s sharp, quick-witted tongue swirled and complemented the floral taste beautifully.

“And don’t you forget it,” Rhys sighed against his lips.

*

Vaughn yelled overly-loudly that he was going to Yvette’s as Jack poured Rhys another glass of wine. Rhys was giggly and giddy, pawing at Jack as he watched the door close.

Jack took no time in tearing Rhys’s shirt off and shoving him down on the couch cushions.

“That was a great shirt,” Rhys grumbled into the kiss. He didn’t stay mad particularly long because Jack had yanked his pants down and was descending upon his quivering cock, gazing at it as though it were made of gold.

“Oh kitten, you’re freaking perfect,” the older man muttered before trailing a line up Rhys’s length with his tongue. Rhys writhed, grabbing a fistful of Jack’s hair to keep him grounded. He was certain that Jack was about to inevitably ruin him in more ways than one.

Jack’s own hands gripped at Rhys’s pronounced hip bones, digging his nails in to make the younger squirm. He loved the way it made Rhys moan.

“I forgot my – oh shit, already? For fuck’s sake.” Vaughn, who had reappeared in the apartment, could thankfully not see Rhys in all his glory on the sofa thanks to the way the room was laid out. Jack was, however, quite obviously busy with something that wasn’t Rhys’s face. Rhys was like a beetroot as Jack howled with laughter. Vaughn sidled into his room and back out again, cursing as he went.


	6. Power

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once more, thank you for your kudos, bookmarks, lovely comments and Tumblr messages! :D 
> 
> I reiterate that you are most welcome to come and chat with me over on Tumblr whenever you wish, about anything you like! It doesn't have to be related to rhack, I'm always here if you need someone to talk to.

Vaughn was not happy. Yvette could work out that much from the way he stormed into her apartment and slammed the door, allowing it to shudder on its hinges.

“I hate that man!”

“...Which one?”

A pause. “ _Both_.”

*

“You know,” Jack purred, kissing up the inside of Rhys’s upper thigh, “I can totally imagine you in thigh-highs and a garter, kitten.” He latched his mouth onto the sensitive skin and drew out both a purpling mark and a gasp from Rhys, whose hands tangled in his hair and held on tight. “Maybe a pair of stilettos, just to top it all off...” His lips trailed to Rhys’s cock, taking it into his mouth again with gusto. Arching his back from the mattress, Rhys whined loudly and tightened his grasp.

“Ngh...oh _fuck_...maybe another time...” He threw his head back, baring that pretty little neck which was all too much for Jack. “Just get _inside me_ already.”

With a pop, Jack abandoned his ministrations to crawl up and bite down on that neck, wanting to leave another mark but deciding not to for fear that Tassiter might have something to say about that. Rhys wrapped his arms around Jack’s neck and moaned, low and guttural, as their lengths brushed below. Jack shuddered, pressing a light kiss to Rhys’s lips.

“You’re so beautiful,” Jack muttered into his cheek as he continued kissing back down to Rhys’s jaw. He pushed himself up onto all fours and stared down at the man below him who was sprawled out, deliciously naked and absolutely gorgeous. Practically begging to be touched. “You’re such a crafty, devious thing and I hope you know that you’ve got me wrapped around your little finger.”

“Oh, I know,” Rhys said with a wink. “As are you, Handsome. When you wish to be.” Rhys’s voice suddenly dropped to a whisper. “We’re gonna rule the world, you and I.”

This cut through Jack’s neediness and horniness like a knife and suddenly he was entirely present in the situation at hand. Rhys blinked, biting his lip. He seemed afraid, like perhaps he’d said the wrong thing, but Jack caught his mouth with his own and kissed him slow, telling him how yes....

...Yes, they were.

*

The first few days without Rhys in the office were hard on Jack. He’d had only a very short period of time, between kissing Rhys for the first time and Rhys getting the job as Tassiter’s PA, to daydream about all the things he would do to the boy in various areas of his office during work hours.  Instead, Jack had been administered another intern who, unfortunately, was not up to Rhys’s standards.  Rhys - of course - loved hearing about what a crap intern Jack had, as it boosted his ego drastically to hear how his competence was missed.  Nevertheless, he patted Jack’s hand with a sympathetic smile as the older man grumbled over his coffee.

“Has Tassiter got you running down to R&D again later?”

Rhys sat back in his chair, stretching.  He and Jack had organised simultaneous lunch breaks and he was enjoying being away from Tassiter, even for a brief moment.

“Yeah, says that the plans for the new production line aren’t up to scratch. The guys down there are worried that they’ll be fired for fucking up.” He shrugged. “All I can say is that they’d better get into gear because even _I’m_ unimpressed.”

Jack was about to reply when he noticed a group of executives by the café entrance. They were casting glances at Rhys, murmuring about something with a great sense of urgency. He reached out a hand and closed it around the PA’s, offering a quick smile at the man who was checking his ECHO before looking back at the men by the door. They appeared to be...afraid?

“Hey, do you know those people?”

Rhys looked up, confused. He shifted and turned, before spinning back with a grin. “Oh, yeah! They’re part of the R&D program. They were there when I went down to visit yesterday. They uh...” He smirked, twirling the spoon around in his cup. “They won’t be sending such shit plans upstairs again.”

Jack sat back and folded his arms. “What do you mean by that? Are you already forgetting why you applied for this job?”

Rolling his eyes, Rhys chuckled. “Look. I’m doing as I’ve been asked because I have to be on Tassiter’s good side. Well. You know. His _better_ side. Which I’m praying he actually has. The closer we get, Tassiter and I, the closer _we_ get,” he motioned between them, “to bagging ourselves a down and out ex-CEO.”

The people by the door were talking in low voices, watching Rhys with wary eyes.

“Yes but what did you _do_ , Rhys?”

“I simply made my presence known,” Rhys replied with a shrug. “At first they acted like I was some kind of a joke. A gimmick of Tassiter’s, if you will.” The executives moved out of the coffee shop, having not bought anything. “As you are well aware, I _don’t_ take lightly to people not taking me seriously. So I had to make it clear who the hell they were talking to.”

Jack sighed and laughed, rubbing a thumb over Rhys’s hand. “You’re really letting this promotion get to your head, huh, pumpkin? Enjoying the power a little too much, maybe?”

Rhys cackled. “Perhaps.” He lifted back his grey blazer to reveal a small yet decently modified pistol. As Jack’s jaw fell, he let the blazer fall back into place. “It’s funny,” he mused, looking at the ceiling before meeting Jack’s gaze. “When you spend a few weeks actually seeing the level of shit Tassiter has to deal with and _then_ taking a lot of that shit on-board yourself...certain methods of persuasion and ways of getting what you want are more... _necessary.”_

“Did you kill someone?”

Rhys face grew resolute as he sipped at his coffee. “I merely landed them in the Medical Wing with a leg that might just take some time to heal.”

“ _Some_ time?”

“Maybe a year...” Rhys smirked and wiggled his eyebrows. “...Maybe two.”

Jack sat back in his chair. Rhys held his gaze. “You’re serious?”

“Like you said once, Jackie.” Leaning across the table, Rhys placed a finger under Jack’s chin and tilted his head. “This is life and death shit, babe.”

*

The following morning, Jack awoke to the sound of his alarm. He ached in all the right places and grinned as he rolled over to find Rhys, who incidentally was nowhere to be seen.  He yawned and stretched before clambering out of bed and pulling on his bathrobe. Peering around the corner, he saw Rhys flitting about the kitchen and making something which smelled nothing short of incredible _._

“Mornin’,” Jack grunted, slipping onto the barstool. Rhys jumped at the sudden noise but span with a smile, brandishing the spatula and bopping Jack on the nose.

“Good morning, sunshine!”

“Rhys!” came a shriek from across the room. Angel, whose hair was wild and whose nightdress was tucked into the back of her underpants, charged into the tall man’s arms for a cuddle. “You’re back again!”

“That I am, honey,” Rhys replied warmly. “Would you like some special Rhys bacon and eggs? I’m also making some of my very extraordinary Secret-Ingredient-Oatmeal. What do you think?”

“Mmmmmmmm,” she hummed, bounding over to Jack and begging to be lifted onto his lap. In return, Jack rolled his eyes but hoisted her anyway. Both Lawrences watched their new companion preparing the food, occasionally making conversation and more than once a minute Angel would ask what the secret ingredient was. Eventually, Rhys placed the food out on the bar and began dishing up. Angel was immediately munching down the oatmeal, blurting ingredient after ingredient.

Jack peered down at the dish and dug in his spoon. Placing it into his mouth, he contemplated for a mere millisecond before,

“It’s _obviously_ cinnamon.”

Rhys’s eyes widened as he whacked him on the arm. “Hey!” The pout that Rhys offered him had Jack hissing with laughter, trying to dodge Rhys’s prods of anguish. “You’re supposed to be the adult here! Let the little one have the fun. You’re a meanie.”

Jack guffawed, leaning over to kiss Rhys on the cheek. Rhys kept up his appearance of anger, but as he turned back to the frying pan, Jack saw a definite hint of a smile.

He wasn’t ready to admit aloud that he wanted to wake up to Rhys’s breakfasts every single day.

*

A few weeks later, Jack was working on the Moonshot hardware in the Eye when Tassiter appeared, Rhys and two guards trailing closely behind him. Rhys offered him a small, somewhat sympathetic smile as the CEO strolled over.

“Make a note that Mr. Lawrence’s intern is nowhere in sight. There will _certainly_ be a disciplinary for that.”

At this, rage bubbled inside of Jack and he sat up from his place under the monitors, hitting his head as he went. Rubbing at the marked spot furiously, he stood and glowered with all of his might.

“ _Sir_ , my intern is fetching us coffee because we’re going to be here _all_ night.” For this, it was Jack’s turn to throw Rhys an apologetic look. They’d planned to have dinner at seven but that most definitely wouldn’t be happening. “If we don’t get caffeine in our systems, we’ll-”

Tassiter raised his hand, silencing Jack mid-sentence. Jack could’ve punched him, he could’ve...he could’ve… he could’ve done worse than that, but he’d rather keep his head. It was at this moment that the intern appeared, carrying the two coffees. He stalled when he saw who Jack was talking to. He looked like he wanted to make a run for it.

Jack didn’t blame him.

“Mr. Lawrence, your intern isn’t here to fetch your coffee. They’re here to _learn_ from you. Tut tut. Not that they would learn a great deal, I’m sure.” Tassiter laughed and turned to Rhys, who laughed in return. Jack gawped, a pain searing across his chest as Rhys glared at him. He looked like he was meant to be at Tassiter’s side at that moment. Jack knew it was all for show but he couldn’t help the awful feeling crept through him. “Rhys, write up a disciplinary for Mr. Lawrence. Perhaps he needs a reason to get off of his high horse.”

“With pleasure, sir,” Rhys replied. The two turned and walked away, past the cowering intern who stepped aside to let them pass. Jack was fuming. He slammed a fist down on the monitor, making the old system shake under the force of it. The shaking kid who had retrieved the damned coffees placed Jack’s down on the side and the man swooped it up, gulping down the contents for some relief from his shitshow of a life. What poured onto his tongue was not what he ordered. In fact, it was something else entirely.

...It was disgusting.

“What the _fuck_ is this?” he roared, throwing the cup down and spilling the contents on the floor. The intern backed away, coffee drooling from his mouth - residue from the cup he was holding.

“Um...Mr. Lawrence...that was mine, I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry, I’ll go and get another one, I-”

Oh, that was _it_ for Jack. The kid had overheard the conversation. He’d messed up the cups after the conversation. He’d been fucking up all day and Jack had been so close to the edge when finally, _finally,_ to top it _all_ off…

Jack hadn’t even been given the right coffee.

Jack stalked over, grabbing the boy around the throat and shoving him hard against the wall. The kid tried hard to tell Jack to stop, to let go, that he was _so_ sorry, but from how hard Jack was squeezing he could barely make a sound. As the situation for the intern got more and more dire, his eyes began bulging like a goddamned fish and he clawed hard against Jack’s arms. His nails tore into Jack’s skin, leaving lines of red that would no doubt be questioned upon later by-

By _Rhys._

The anger that Jack was feeling multiplied and he pushed the boy up the wall so high that his feet were no longer making contact with the ground. He was purple now. It was at that moment that something Jack hadn’t really felt before came washing over him. He felt a sense of power at being able to control whether or not this wimp would survive another day on this godforsaken space station. Just a few more moments and he’d be limp as a _dead_ fish. A stupid, ignorant, worthless little dead fish.

However, if he did that...

He’d probably get another disciplinary.

With a grunt, Jack let the intern fall to the ground. He walked away, flexing his hand, as the boy gasped for the breath he had been lacking. Jack wouldn’t kill him.

No, he wouldn’t kill him this time.

*

Jack was glad that he didn’t have to see Rhys for dinner. He was glad that he didn’t have to see Rhys when he woke up in the morning. He was glad that he didn’t have to wake up to the smell of Rhys cooking breakfast. He was glad when Angel asked, “Where’s Rhys, Daddy?” to which he’d replied, “I don’t know, baby!”

Because he didn’t and he also didn’t really care.

He knew that his rage was mostly unjustified. He knew that way Rhys had acted was all part of the plan to take down Tassiter. However, Rhys hadn’t contacted him since yesterday and that pissed Jack off. He hadn’t even said sorry.

After dropping Angel at school, Jack headed down to Tassiter Hall to grab a coffee. He was taking his first sip as he stepped outside when an all-too familiar voice piped up from beside him.

“Hey.”

With a deep breath, Jack turned. Rhys was biting his lip, hand tight around his satchel. “Hello, Rhys.”

“You, uh, okay?”

“What a question to ask!” Jack snorted, punching Rhys hard on the shoulder. “You’re such a funny guy, ain’t ya, Rhysie?”

“Look, Jack,” Rhys replied, following Jack whilst rubbing at his shoulder. “I’m sorry about yesterday. I should have called but I was up all night too, I had to file reports until two. I was exhausted and fell asleep when I got home. I’m really sorry!”

Jack span on his heel as he halted abruptly. It was true; Rhys did have dark circles under his now-watery eyes. He was biting his lip _again_ and as he blinked a tear slipped down his cheek.

“It’s part of the plan. I have to get in close. I would never say or do anything like that and mean it. You _know_ that.”

There was silence between them for a while. Rhys was sniffling and Jack was thinking. Eventually he sighed, wrapped an arm around Rhys’s shoulder, and lead them towards the elevator.

“I nearly killed my intern, yesterday,” he muttered, pressing the button.

Rhys sniffed. “What? Why?”

The memories that still haunted Jack made him shudder. “He gave me the wrong coffee.”

A hand flew to Rhys’s chest as he gasped. “Oh my goodness. He _didn’t_.”

Jack smirked, pulling Rhys close as the elevator doors slid shut. He placed a kiss on his forehead and leant back against the wall.

Perhaps he might just be glad to smell Rhys’s breakfast in the morning tomorrow.


	7. I Love You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm on a roll right now
> 
> There might even be a third chapter posted today
> 
> Thank you so much to @shippingismypersonalhell for their wonderful idea contributions to this chapter and the last. :D (Pssssst go follow them on Tumblr)

It was when the three-month marker passed that Rhys finally sat down with Jack to discuss what they had learnt.

Which was, quite honestly, not much.

Tassiter was a very guarded man, in more senses than one, and getting access to his files was almost impossible after the Masquerade Ball scenario. Tassiter had installed passcode after passcode to get into his emails, unlike before when Rhys had managed to hack through the singular one.

“There hasn’t been anything more on the Jakobs scandal,” Rhys sighed as he sat cross-legged on Angel’s bed, plaiting her hair. Jack was on the small chair in the corner of the room, flicking through a programming manual. “It’s like it’s all been swept under the carpet. No one has mentioned anything online.”

“Perhaps it was nothing after all.” Jack looked up, taking off his glasses. “I mean, we might have just caught the wrong end of the stick.”

“There, Angel. All done.” Rhys kissed the top of her head. “Get into bed, okay? Daddy and I will leave you to go to sleep.”

“Nooooo,” Angel whined, pouting. “I want to stay up!”

Rhys frowned, placing his hands on his hips. “But it’s already half past eight.”

Angel folded her arms, copying his frown. “I. want. to. stay. Up.”

Jack rose to his feet, crossing the room. He grabbed Angel around the waist as Rhys hoisted back the sheets. Jack shoved her inside and the two men pinned down either side of the bed so she was stuck fast, only her head showing. Rhys laughed; he’d never seen a child look so indignant before in his life.

“Daddy,” she said calmly.

“Yes, Angel?”

“That _wasn’t_ very nice.”

Jack chuckled and kissed her on the cheek. “Night night, baby girl. I love you.”

She sighed, looking from Rhys to Jack. “Fine. I’ll go to sleep. But only if Rhys _promises_ to make breakfast tomorrow.” She turned to Jack. “Sorry Daddy, but Rhys’s breakfast _is_ the best.”

Jack glared at Rhys who merely shrugged. “Can’t argue with that.”

“Okay. He can make breakfast if you go to sleep.”

Angel grinned, snuggling down under the covers. “I love you Daddy. I love you Rhys.”

Rhys smiled. “Love you too, Angel.”

When they returned to the living room, Rhys slumped onto the couch and ran a hand through his hair.

“So back to Tassiter. I don’t think he trusts anyone on Helios any more because it would have taken a high-level programmer to install those firewalls. And I’m pretty sure it wasn’t you.”

Jack collapsed on the other end, shoving his feet under Rhys’s butt. “Well if it was me, I’d be a massive dick for not telling you, wouldn’t I?”

“You’re a massive dick to me anyway,” Rhys grumbled, closing his eyes. Jack grinned as he got up and walked around the couch to kiss Rhys. Rhys smiled into the upside-down kiss, arching up so he could find a better angle. It only took moments for both men to fall onto Jack’s bed, shirts falling off here and there. As Jack leant up to move down the bed, he noticed something odd on Rhys’s shoulder.

“...What’s that?” he asked curiously, pulling Rhys’s shoulder gently downwards and towards him. A large purple and green  bruise had formed on the side of Rhys’s shoulder .In response, Rhys laughed.

“I hit my arm on a wall, like an idiot. Wasn’t looking where I was going.”

Jack frowned. “You really are stupid. I think I might have something for bruising in the bathroom. One second.”

As Jack left to get whatever he’d thought of, Rhys shrank back against the pillows and wrapped his arms around himself. One hand trailed to the tender bruise and brushed across it carefully. Jack reappeared, smiling to himself, waving a box of what looked like a kind of cream.

“Here. This should do it.”

Rhys smiled back, but didn’t reply as Jack got to work.

*

When Jack was called up to Tassiter’s office, he was psyching himself up for getting shoved out of an airlock. He couldn’t quite think what he had done - perhaps it was about the intern getting strangled?

He didn’t know.

On all other occasions where Jack had been “called” to the CEO’s office, he had been yelled at for some reason or another. He wasn’t particularly enjoying the journey up there, the feeling of anticipation eating at him. The elevator doors pinged open to a familiar view. The last time he’d seen it, he’d been breaking in. The guard at the door nodded as he approached, speaking into a panel by the door. They opened slowly, the added anticipation a cruel joke, and he stepped inside. Rhys was perched at a new desk by the door, watching him as he entered. He allowed himself a moment to flash Rhys a smile. This had the kid blushing slightly but he coughed and regained that faux-professionalism he’d been showing so well.

“J-Mr. Lawrence is here, sir,” he announced confidently,, using his fingertips to push himself into a standing position.

Tassiter did not look up from his work. “Come here, Mr. Lawrence.” Jack swallowed and continued towards the CEO. “You too, Rhys.”

Jack turned his head as he went, glancing back at his partner. Rhys appeared bemused, but didn’t speak as he caught up with Jack. The two men stationed themselves in front of Tassiter’s desk, waiting patiently for him to address them. Jack had his arms folded across his chest, one foot before the other. He sat back on his hips, his posture suggesting that he didn’t really have time to be there. Rhys, on the other hand, had his hands clasped together behind his back. He was obviously used to waiting for Tassiter to get the hell on with it. With Tassiter distracted by something, Jack dared to give Rhys a little side eye, catching his other half doing the same. Rhys had his lip rolled under his teeth. He was nervous. Nervous for Jack? Nervous for himself?

Jack just wanted Tassiter to get done with what he wanted to say.

“So,” Tassiter began. “You’re probably wondering why I called you both here.”

“You could say that,” Jack retorted, stepping back and leaning forward slightly as he spoke.

Tassiter stood, placing his hands behind his back. He furrowed his brow. If looks could kill, Jack would be one dead son-of-a-bitch. “Watch your tongue, boy, or I’ll send you back to whence you came.”

Biting back a remark of how that’s actually what he would prefer, Jack rocked back on his heels and kept quiet.

“As I was _saying_ , I have some business that requires attending to down on Pandora.  Some of the Eridium mining machines have become erratic and they require the attention of the man who programmed them. Thus I will be sending you down to Pandora, Mr. Lawrence, along with my personal assistant who will ensure the job is done correctly and in the quickest time possible. IS that understood?”

Jack looked at Rhys.

Rhys looked at Jack.

“You….want us to go to Pandora? Together?”  
This had Tassiter stumped. Jack had obviously said something that had thrown him.

“Yes…? Is that a problem? Is there something I need to be aware of?”

“No sir!” Jack replied hastily, beginning to fret. “I’ve just...heard a lot about your PA and I’m not a particularly big fan, to be quite honest.” He shot Rhys a glare. “It’s hard to imagine travelling to a planet with a man who almost killed someone for tripping him up in the hallway.”

At this, Tassiter smirked. “Which is precisely _why_ he is the man who is going with you. Rhys here knows _just_ how I like things done.”

“That’s rich coming from you, after the way you treated him when you first met.”

“Perhaps even _I_ can be wrong sometimes,” Tassiter replied smoothly. “Rhys is a fantastic PA who I completely trust with this undertaking.”

Jack threw his head back and laughed. “You trust someone who’s clumsy enough to fall over in front of everyone and spill coffee all over himself? With a mission on Pandora? Ha! Okay.”

“I would be careful how you speak out, Mr. Lawrence,” Rhys snapped, stepping forwards and between the programmer and Tassiter. “Or you might just be the next person to _almost_ get killed.”

Tassiter clapped his hands together with a smile. “So it’s settled then. Your shuttle will leave three hours.”

Jack’s heart stopped. “Three hours? I have a daughter, sir. I can’t leave her unattended-”

“-She will be cared for top quality childcare providers, I can assure you. I will have it arranged and you will be notified before you travel. Pack lightly, Mr. Lawrence. It’ll be a long walk from the train.”

*

When Jack saw Rhys again, it was in the shuttle bay. The tall man was waiting by the door to their vehicle, arms folded across his chest and a mighty scowl plastered across his face. Jack approached, leaning and waving at his boyfriend with a grin. Rhys glowered when he saw him and huffed, retreating into the shuttle.

“Hey, Rhys!” Jack chimed, stepping on-board. “How are you? Isn’t this going to be an _exciting_ adventure?”

Rhys remained stoic. He glared out of the window. Jack threw his bag down beside the pilot’s seat and sat down, turning to his co-pilot. He leant in close.

“Heeeey, Rhys.”

Nothing.

“Rhysieee.”

“Would you just shut up and get us out of here, please?”

“Ohhkay Mr. Grumpy, I’ll do that. Just don’t go falling out of your chair or anything. _Buckle up tight._ ”

That was it. He’d pressed the button. Rhys flew around and punched Jack square in the jaw.

“Woah, holy shit!” Jack gasped, rubbing his no-doubt bruising cheek.

Rhys hissed and kissed his knuckles, glaring at Jack over the top of them.

“You deserved that, you asshole.”

“I didn’t think you’d _punch_ me. You’ve _never_ punched me!”

Rhys let out a snarl and stood, spinning Jack’s chair around and thrusting a finger in his face. “That fall was _the_ most embarrassing thing that has _ever_ happened to me and you just had to play it up again in front of Tassiter, didn’t you? You had to remind me of what an idiot I was and how I’m the laughing stock of pretty much the entirety of the company.” Rhys spread his hands wide. “Big shot PA who takes no ones shit falls over like a fucking moron in front of the board, the execs and the top clientele. Never recovers. Goes into rehab for drugs he used to cope. Dies at thirty four.”

By this point, Jack is howling with laughter. He slapped his thigh and doubled over, tears streaming out of his eyes.

“But it’s just so _funny_.”

“Oh my _GOD_ shut _UP_!” Rhys went to punch him again but this time Jack caught his fist and his tie and yanked him down so that their faces were only millimetres apart.

“Oh come on, I’m only kidding. I love you really, pumpkin.”

Silence.

Rhys stared at him with wide eyes, unmoving. It took Jack a few seconds to realise what he had said. Without a word, Jack turned, buckled himself up and started the engine. Rhys slid into the seat beside him and placed his hands in his lap. He stared out of the window, mouth clamped shut.

It was silent for a long while, as both men’s heads whirled with what had just happened. The abrupt change in emotions Rhys had experienced had him reeling. It was after two hours of quietness that he eventually spoke.

“....You love me?” he whispered, mainly to himself.

Jack smiled, keeping his eyes ahead. He reached over and curled a hand around Rhys’s own, squeezing it gently.

“Oh, kitten,” he replied softly. “How could I not?”


	8. Sisters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't get too comfortable with these quick updates, my loves. The weekend is our friend but I'm a working gal and in the words of Rihanna I gotta werk werk werk during the week. I'll try and update as often as possible though! 
> 
> Thank you for all of your beautiful comments <3

Jack barely had time to initiate the autopilot system before he was grabbed by the wrist and pulled into the pathetic excuse for a bedroom at the back of the ship.  

“Rhys-” was all he managed before his mouth was on Jack’s own.  Their mouths melted together beautifully, and Jack wrapped his arms around Rhys, holding him close. As their tongues met, Rhys surged forwards, pushing Jack towards the bed.

“I love you, Jack. God, I love you. I’ve loved you for such a long time.” Rhys was almost crying now, his eyelashes wet with tears yet to fall. He resumed the kiss, hands on either side of Jack’s face. Jack was filled with raw emotion, but Jack didn’t cry.

Jack _never_ cried.

Releasing Jack’s lips from his own, Rhys pushed Jack onto the bed and tugged at his belt as Jack worked on Rhys’s shirt buttons. Rhys grumbled a little as he fought with the buckle but eventually was able to tug down Jack’s pants along with his underwear. Jack sprang forth, his solid cock weeping and practically pleading to be touched. Rhys tugged off his own shirt before starting on Jack’s, but Jack grabbed his wrists as he stared at his chest.

“What the _hell_ is that?” Jack snapped, eyes on the very large bruise across the side of Rhys’s ribs. Rhys covered himself and turned a deep shade of red, biting down on his lip hard.

“It’s from when I fell over,” he muttered, looking away. “Because I’m an idiot.”

Jack threw his head back and laughed, catching the PA’s chin in his fingers and kissing him.

“That you are. Don’t worry, I’ll be gentle with you.”

“Thank you,” Rhys murmured, a strange tone in his voice. He then continued to unbutton Jack’s shirt.

Soon, Jack was fully naked, and Rhys stepped back to admire him, hands on his hips. Bending down, he picked up Jack’s jeans and dug around in the back pocket. He produced a condom and a packet of lube, waggling his eyebrows at Jack knowingly.

Jack shrugged. “I thought we might need them on this trip. Guess I was right.”

“That’s not what I’m thinking about, Jackie,” Rhys replied, grinning mysteriously. Rhys looked at the condom, admiring it. Then, to Jack’s surprise, he tossed it away.

“...Rhys?” Jack propped himself up on his elbows.

Rhys bit into the packet of lube, tearing the top off with his teeth. Jack’s cock twitched at the sight; he wanted to be inside Rhys and he wanted it _now_. He was also liking the fact it was looking like Rhys was going to give him a show and prep himself for a change.

“I got tested last week,” Rhys announced, pouring a little lube onto his fingers and placing a hand on Jack’s knee. “Finally. I meant to do it ages ago. I know you got tested but you know me, it’s those kinds of things that I put off.” He pushed Jack’s leg down, spreading them apart. As he stepped forward, realisation hit Jack.

“Oh shit, are you-”

He couldn’t say much more as Rhys pushed a finger inside him, curling it up and hitting his prostate off the bat. Jack gasped, eyes blowing wide open and his mouth falling agape. Rhys continued pumping his finger in and out and then he introduced another, whispering sweet nothings against Jack’s lips and telling him what a good boy he was; that he was doing great.

Jack had never been a bottom. He had never _wanted_ to be a bottom. But then again, he hadn’t known that he could be made to feel this _good_. The feeling was unnatural, but not awful. No, not awful in the _slightest._

“Fuck, _Rhys_ ,” he moaned as Rhys added a third and final finger. Rhys kissed him deeply, pausing every so often to tell Jack he loved him. Jack felt tears spring to the corners of his eyes but he chased them away, adamant that he would not cry.

Rhys picked up the packet of lube and squeezed a large amount onto his hand. Jack watched with bated breath, knowing what was coming, as Rhys stroked his own cock in preparation. The younger man pushed Jack up the bed, clambering on and hovering over him. Jack blinked up at him, putty in Rhys’s hands.

“You tell me to stop and I’ll stop, okay?” Rhys whispered, pressing his lips onto his chest. “We’ll just do it as normal if you aren’t comfortable.”

Jack only nodded and closed his eyes, tilting his head back as he waited for the inevitable stretch and burn of what was to come. It came – that stretch and burn – and Jack hissed, biting down hard on his lip and scrunching the sheets into the balls of his fists. Rhys slid in deeper, slowly. Currently, Jack wasn’t enjoying much of what was happening. He was almost ready to end it all when Rhys pulled back out and pushed back in again at a faster pace.  The feeling was indescribable and god, all Jack wanted was more. He cried out as Rhys pushed into him again and he spread his legs further apart before wrapping them around Rhys.

Rhys looked fucking _heavenly_ as he drove himself into Jack, mouth hanging open and eyes closed. Jack reached up and grabbed him roughly, tugging him down so he could kiss him hard. Rhys happily obliged, taking the nature of the kiss to speed up, and Jack was wrecked. He couldn’t hold back any longer and he moaned so loudly that he was sure both Pandora and Helios would hear him. What came next was repetition of both Rhys’s name, ‘I love you’ and moaning. Lots of moaning. Jack had never felt this way in his entire life. Rhys was fucking him hard now, telling him over and over again how gorgeous he looked. Rhys’s own moans chorused along with Jack’s and soon enough the older man shouted as he came all over his stomach, Rhys following in his wake. The two men collapsed beside one another briefly, but Rhys – despite his shuddering breaths – rolled over and kissed Jack softly on the lips. He stroked the back of his hand down Jack’s face and smiled.

“Still love me?” he asked, kissing him on the forehead. Jack swallowed, his mouth dry.

“Maybe even more, after that.”

Rhys grinned sleepily before laying his head on Jack’s shoulder and closing his eyes. Jack rubbed his arm gently and kissed the top of his head.

He really hoped Tassiter didn’t have hidden cameras on-board, or he would have had quite the show.

*

It was essential that when they arrived on Pandora they looked presentable and _not_ like they’d just spent two hours fucking in the back of the shuttle. As Rhys hurriedly tugged on his pants as they prepared for descent, Jack shifted in his seat.

“Is it usually this painful after?” he asked, trying hard to focus on the flying. Rhys strapped himself in and turned to face him, smiling sympathetically. He patted Jack’s knee.

“Yes, it does I’m afraid. But if you do it often enough,” Rhys winked, “then it gets less painful each time.”

“Ha,” Jack muttered, furrowing his brows. “If you do it often enough? What are you trying to imply?”

Rhys simply gave his leg a squeeze before settling down for landing. Jack smirked. The pain was bad, but knowing how it happened in the first place?

He really couldn’t care less.

*

They arrived on Pandora safely, out in the desert and away from any kind of civilisation. Rhys groaned and held his ribs as they came into contact with the ground, but Jack just chuckled and called him an idiot again.

Because he _was_ an idiot who bruised easy.

The two men hopped out of the shuttle to detach the car which was secured to the back. It was a decent vehicle, Jack noticed. He was impressed that Tassiter hadn’t sent down some shitty little motor that would take forever to cross the desert in.

“So,” Jack said, climbing into the driver’s seat. “Let’s do this.”

Rhys was oddly quiet. Jack looked over and Rhys was quite obviously chewing on something.

“My uh...my family live not too far from here. In a place called Hollow Point. I mean, what I’m saying is, could we possibly take a short detour?.”

“You want to take me to meet the family, huh?” Jack chuckled, starting the engine and putting the car into gear. He knew Rhys hadn’t seen his sisters in years. He couldn’t exactly say no. “We’re really going through all the relationship stages today, ain’t we, kiddo?”

Rhys blushed and smiled. “I guess we are. You sure you don’t mind?”

“Not at all.”

*

Hollow Point was a dismal place, tucked away in an enormous cave where the occasional spiderant scuttled across the path on the way in. Jack wasn’t used to Pandora; he’d only been down a handful of times on Hyperion-related missions. Rhys was getting anxious - he was on the edge of his seat and his eyes were darting everywhere.

“You worried about something?” Jack asked, leaning over to pat his knee.

“No,” Rhysreplied, shaking his head and beaming. “I’m _excited_.”

*

The car rolled up outside of a run-down caravan. Jack seriously could not connect Rhys with this shithole. He was too prim and proper and...clean.

Rhys didn’t move out of the car. He simply sat, staring at the caravan as though it were made of diamonds.

“You can go in, you know. I’ll wait here.”

Rhys turned, eyes glassy. “No! No!” He grabbed at Jack’s hands. “Please come with me.”

Rolling his eyes and chuckling, Jack exited the car and opened Rhys’s door, offering him a hand. Rhys took it and Jack felt that he was shaking.

“You really missed these guys, huh?”

Rhys blinked, a tear slipping down his cheek. “More than you’ll ever know.”

He raised his fist on knocked. There was a shuffle and the sound of someone cocking a gun. The door opened a crack.

“Holy shit, Rhys?!” came a shriek from the woman who stood in the doorway. In seconds, she had enveloped Rhys in her arms and Jack let go, allowing them to embrace properly.

Rhys was crying, she was crying. There were a lot of people crying. But not Jack.

Jack never cried.

“Rhys, oh my _god,_ we’ve missed you so much!” The girl pulled away to kiss him all over his face. “Fi’s out on a job, but she’ll be freaking out the moment she sees you! Oh my god, I still can’t believe you’re really here!! Why didn’t you tell us you were coming?!”

Rhys took a deep breath through his tears and wiped his eyes. “I thought I’d surprise you! Jack didn’t mind a detour because we’re on a mission at the moment so-”

“ _This_ is _Jack_?!” the girl gasped, staring at him like he was something godly. “Woah, he’s hot! I’m proud of you, big bro!” She punched Rhys on the arm lightly.

Rhys turned scarlet and Jack was unsure of what to say, but she broke the silence.

“Come in! Come in! We have _so_ much to talk about.”

*

Sasha bustled about the kitchenette, grabbing a few mugs from various places and spooning something definitely questionable into each one.

“So you’re on a mission for Tassiter? Aren’t you still trying to take him down?”

Jack stiffened. “You _told_ them?” he spat, turning on Rhys. “How could you tell them?”

At Jack’s sudden anguish, Rhys recoiled. “It’s a private network! I made sure no one would ever be able to overhear my conversations-”

Jack threw his hands in the air, at a loss. “What would have happened if you’d been caught? If _we’d_ been caught?! I can’t believe you risked that!”

Rhys frowned. “I’m not an idiot, Jack. I do _know_ how to set up a private connection.”

Jack rolled his eyes. “That’s not the _point_.”

At that moment, the door to the caravan swung open.

“Some douchebag has blocked the van in with his douchebag car,” a woman broadcasted in annoyance, dropping bags down onto the floor. She span around smiling, but the smile transposed into a gawp as she laid eyes on-

“RHYS?!”

“FI!”

Rhys was on his feet and the two met halfway, crashing together in a tight hug. Fiona’s hat fell off and bounced across the ground but she didn’t seem to care. Sasha stole across the small space, worming her way into the embrace, and the three remained like that for what seemed like an age. It warmed Jack’s heart to see Rhys so happy.

They broke apart and all smiled at each other warmly. It was then that Fiona turned and eyed Jack cautiously.

“I assume _this_ is the Jack Lawrence we’ve heard so much about?” She stalked over and placed a heeled boot on the chair beside Jack, resting her elbow on her knee to inspect him more closely. “Now tell me, Jackie boy. What are your plans with our Rhys?”


	9. Skag Specials

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I underestimated myself. Here's another chapter for y'all to (hopefully) enjoy. <3

 

Jack wasn’t sure he recalled how they ended up in The Purple Skag bar, but yet here he was. What was supposed to have been a “short detour” had somehow become a “oh how abouts we just stay the night, what’s the harm in that?”

Sitting at a table near the bar, Jack watched as Rhys slipped into something he hadn’t seen before. Rhys was behind the bar, pouring drinks for them and others who happened upon the place. He was a different person: mellow and at home. Jack smiled as he watched his partner, sipping at his beer every so often when he remembered it was there. Fiona, who had perched herself on the stool beside him, was a quiet drinking companion. She too watched Rhys and Sasha giggle and fall about as they reached for high-up bottles on the back shelves.

“We’d been stuck together like glue since we were kids,” she admitted after some time. “Inseparable. We planned every con together. We got each other through everything.” There was a pause as she collected herself; Jack wasn’t sure what she was collecting herself _from_ , but he guessed Rhys might mention it eventually.

“Rhys has always been driven by money,” she continued. “Whist he isn’t the _best_ of the three of us at conning, he...he is the _unsurpassable_ at planning for the best deal.” She swirled the contents of her bottle, eyeing it intensely. “But conning wasn’t enough. Rhys kept looking for more and small Pandoran towns can only offer so much.”

Jack was listening. Rhys hadn’t explained any of this to him.  
He began to wonder if Rhys ever would’ve.

Suddenly, Fiona sat up straight. She snapped her head around to look at Jack and there was a warning gleam in her eyes. “He shouldn’t _be_ here.”

“Wha-”

“Heyyyyy!” Rhys announced, floating to the table and placing himself on Jack’s lap. Jack desperately wanted Fiona to continue but she had disappeared by the time he’d gotten around to opening his mouth. “So how do you like Hollow Point?”

“Rhys I think there’s something-”

“It’s so good to be home,” Rhys sighed with a grin. “Can you believe it’s been four years since I’ve seen this place?”

“No but I-”

“Sasha! Can you bring over a few Purple Skag Specials?” Rhys turned, running a finger up Jack’s jaw. “He’s not _nearly_ drunk enough for this place.”

Jack was unable to ask any more questions on the matter due to the fact that these “Specials” were flaming shots and Sasha had delivered _eight_ of them.

“Six for you and two for Rhys,” she said, placing them one by one on the table. She put her hand to her mouth. “You should know what lightweight my brother is.”

Jack smirked, nodding. “Oh yes,” he replied, prodding Rhys in the sides and making him giggle, “I’m well acquainted with what a lightweight he can be.” Jack glanced down at the burning drinks and back up at Sasha. “Do I really have to drink these?”

She shrugged, lifting the tray to her shoulder and placing a hand on her hip. “It’s tradition. Your first time in the Skag, you have to down six Specials. And seeing as your Rhys’s boyf, I don’t think you really have a choice.”

Jack slumped back in the chair and sighed, Rhys’s weight beginning to have an affect on his thighs. He picked up a shot and examined it before knocking it back. It tasted like…

It tasted like skag shit.

“Ugh!”

Rhys and Sasha laughed, and Rhys grabbed his own, tipping it down his throat. He wiped his mouth on the back of his sleeve and thrust another shot into Jack’s hand.

“No no, I really don’t think this is a great idea.”

“It’s a _wonderful_ idea,” the boy on his lap argued, kissing him on the cheek. “I haven’t seen you drunk before. I think it’s about time.”

“I don’t get drunk.” Jack straightened in his chair. “I’m a master at the art of _not_ getting drunk, cupcake. You know that.”

At this, Sasha plopped herself down in the chair beside him and leant on her hand, grinning. “My dear Jack, you have yet to drink six Specials. Try telling me after that you’re not drunk.”

“No really,” Rhys chimed, mouth as wide as a Cheshire Cat. “Just _try_ telling her that when you’ve had six Specials. I’d love to bear witness to that.”

That as all Jack needed to down each shot one after the other. Proving a point had always been a bad habit of Jack’s, but the reason he enjoyed it so much is because he always came out on top.

*

“I _hate_ this place,” Jack muttered, hanging off of Fiona’s shoulder like a limp monkey. By the time they’d managed to scrape Jack up from the dance floor, Rhys had sobered and was on Jack’s other side, keeping him from falling to the ground.

Again.

“It’s so dark and ugly. Like. Who’d live in a cave out of choice?”

They continued down an alley and a rat shot across their path. Jack freaked.

“ _Oh my god,_ don’t you see the filth?! No wonder you left for Hyperion, Rhysiecakes.” The older man turned his head and kissed Rhys’s cheek. “You’re so good at making good decisions.” He turned to Fiona. “Isn’t he good at making good decisions?”

“Yeah, a real knockout,” Fiona mumbled, frowning. “Whose idea was it to get him wasted again?”

Rhys did not reply. He merely chewed on his lip and laughed in spite of himself.

“You know, I’m really not sure I like those Specials. They tasted like _dirt_. Have you tasted dirt? You probably have, you _are_ Pandoran. That’s them. _Dirt_. I mean seriously how is that even a tradition of yours. At least make the drinks decent. I always knew you Pandorans were an indecent bunch.”

“Does he ever shut up?” Fiona bent a little to hoist Jack back into place.

“No,” Rhys mused. “No, he talks a lot. Likes the sound of his own voice. But I mean, this is even worse than usual.”

“Not to mention he’s a goddamn racist,” she hissed, glaring at him. “All I’m saying is, right now? I don’t approve.”

Neither of the three had time to register what took place over the next few moments. There was a loud crash and through a door to their left, a man in the midst of a brawl collided with Rhys, knocking him to the floor and Fiona and Jack over to the other side of the alley. Rhys had obviously sustained some damage, as he whimpered whilst clutching his bruised ribs. Fiona snapped, whipping out her pistol to threaten some sons of bitches, when Jack grabbed for the gun and took it upon his drunken self to deal with those held accountable.

“Who the _hell_ do you think you are?” he roared, cocking the gun and pointing it between the eyes of a large, pot-bellied excuse for a man. “A pig? Why doesn’t the piggie run home before he gets a bullet lodged in his goddamned skull?” Jack gestured back down the alley with the weapon. The man glowered at him as he rose to his feet and walked away, huffing and cursing as he went. Fiona went to stop Jack in his tracks but with the look he gave her, and with the weapon in his palm, she stepped back and raised her hands in defense.

Jack stepped over the threshold of the bar that had ejected the fat man. “Alright. Who wants to let me in on who threw the pig?”

There were some men on their feet, bearing down upon the programmer in the doorway.

“Who the fuck are you?” one grunted, cracking his knuckles.

“Oh, _don’t_ be so _cliche_ ,” Jack groaned in exhaustion, pulling the trigger and shooting the man between the eyes. A rush of exhilaration shot through his veins and he grinned wide, flashing his canines. Before anyone could blink, he fired a round of bullets and around eight men crumpled to the floor, very much dead.

“Holy hell,” Fiona gasped, grabbing Rhys and pulling him to his feet. “Jack, we have to go.”

Jack blew across the top of the gun. “ _I,_ however, can be as cliche as I goddamn please.” He noticed a group of men staring past him at Rhys, whispering. “Keep your eyes off my goods, you assholes.” He pointed his gun and they glared at him, but stayed in their seats. “Damned right,” he huffed, and followed Fiona out of the bar and back towards to the caravan.

*

“You killed before?” Fiona asked, passing Jack a cold compress which he slapped to his forehead.

“No,” Jack replied with a cackle, still buzzing. “It was awesome.”

Fiona paused from pouring a glass of water. “Awesome…? That’s….that’s a word.”

Yes, it  _was_ awesome. Jack, the guy who was walked all over on Helios, had the power to kill a man. To kill  _nine_ men. He hadn't had to, not really. But...that had been the thrill of it. Hadn't it? That had been what just got. him. _going_. He was itching to do it again. Itching to feel that wave of exhilaration. 

Perhaps Pandora wasn't such a bad place to hang out after all.

“It made me feel goddamn powerful, y’know? You’ve got to know, you’re Pandoran.”

“Okay, here’s the thing, Hyperion,” she hissed, grabbing him by the collar. “Not all Pandoran’s are savages, so get that out of your thick skull _right_ now. Also, yeah, killing people is more common here than it probably is on your fancy space station but it’s not the most amazing feeling taking someone’s life, even if it _is_ a raving psycho.”

Jack shrugged, still feeling the effects of his six Skag Specials. “Well, each to their own. I almost killed my intern the other day. Kind of wish I had now.”

Growling in agitation, Fiona pushed him back onto the seat and ran her hands through her hair. She bit her lip.

“I can’t deal with you. I’m going to get Rhys, perhaps he can talk some sense into you.”

She exited the vehicle, leaving Jack to look around, spot a mirror and smile at himself. Blood was spattered on the front of his shirt and his hair was mussed and out of place.

...He looked goddamn  _glorious._

Mere seconds had passed when Fiona reappeared, white as a sheet and sweating.

“He’s gone, Jack,” she breathed, clutching her chest tightly and tearing up.

Jack stood, concerned. “Gone?”

Fiona nodded, swallowing hard. “She fucking got him.”


	10. Calling in a Favour

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was hard to write. I'd say enjoy but...? Also I wrote this tired and pretty much without a beta so I apologise in advance for any mistakes/confusion.
> 
> ALSO TAKE A MOMENT TO LOOK AT WHAT I DISCOVERED: http://loki-dokey.tumblr.com/post/143497506439  
> LIKE HOLY SMOKES

 

When Rhys came to, his head was fuzzy and extremely painful, as though he’d been whacked around the skull by a nothing short of a metal baseball bat. He blinked, but despite desperate effort, he simply couldn’t see; there appeared some kind of bag over his head. He went to tear it off, only to discover that his wrists were bound by a thick rope. He swallowed, the lump that had formed in his throat and the dryness in his mouth making it incredibly difficult. He shifted in his seat, feeling a solid mass on either side of his legs. The masses moved then, and he heard grunting. He was about to speak when an excruciating blow came down near the base of his neck.

Everything went black.

*

With a cough, Rhys blinked and hissed at the bright lights and the epic pain that was coursing down his neck and spine. Going to move his arms, he found them to be stuck behind his back, around what felt like a chair. A sense of dread crept through his body and into his head, seeping its tendrils deep into his brain. There was really only one person who would go to the extent of kidnapping him - only one person who actually had a reason to.

“Ma, are you sure you want to do this?”

August’s distant yet regretfully familiar voice drifted into Rhys’s ears and he instantly hung his head, tears welling up in the corners of his eyes. August was the _last_ person he wanted to face. He hadn’t really cared about Vallory - she’d always favoured Fi and Sasha, told him he was a shit con artist who didn’t deserve a penny - but August was his _brother._ One of his _best_ friends. He _hated_ himself for betraying him through his betrayal of his mother.

“Son, you have to realise that I can’t just give up the opportunity for revenge when it quite literally arrives on my doorstep.” Vallory’s voice, telling the tales of a thousand cigarettes, was close. So close, in fact, that he could smell her smoke-addled breath from ten feet away. He sucked in his own breath as she rounded the corner to what he only now noticed was a dank basement. A basement that was god only knows where.

“Rhys! My _darling_ ,” she drawled, pinching her cigarette from her lips and flicking it to the ground. She didn’t bother to stamp it out. Wordlessly she advanced, kneeling down before him and grasping his cheeks in her fat, liver-spotted hands. The grip was too tight, painful actually, with no love in it at all. Not that there ever had been.  “How we’ve _missed_ your pretty little face around here!”

“Vallory,” he growled in recognition, furrowing his brows. His gaze slipped sideways to August, who was standing by the doorway with his arms folded. There was an expression on his face that caused Rhys’s stomach to drop deeper than it already had. He desperately wanted to apologise but he knew that there weren’t enough words. Vallory probably wouldn’t let him get them out anyway.

The woman in question rose to her feet, smirking down at him with utter disdain.

“Oh Rhys, my boy, you don’t know how _long_ I’ve been waiting for this moment.” She trailed her hand around the back of his chair as she passed him, finally coming to rest both hands on his quaking shoulders. She leant forwards, lips at his ear. “You have been a _very bad boy.”_

A sick feeling arose in the pit of his stomach. The praying, the hoping that maybe, just _maybe_ she’d forgiven and forgot...ha! Rhys had been such a fool. This was Vallory _._

The sick feeling intensified.

...This was _Vallory._

She leant up, clearing her throat. “Oh Rhys, Rhys, Rhys. You always were a disappointment but then you just had to go and steal my money!” She threw her head back and laughed, the sound false and twisted. She eventually came to a withering halt, slapping him hard on the shoulder. “...Didn’t you, boy?”

Rhys took a deep breath. “You know I was never happy here. I needed more. I had to get off Pandora-”

“And you think I cared about your dreams, you fucking prick?” A firm slap across his face as she rounded back to his front had him wincing and begging some higher being for sweet release from what no doubt was going to be his inevitable death. “You had _no right_ to claim that cash as your own. It was our biggest score on record and you…” She breathed in deeply through her nostrils, as though calming herself from absolutely losing her shit. Her rancid breath became only more pungent as she leant right into his face. “...You. took. it. _all_.”

Rhys heard the crack of the gun across his cheek before he felt it. The stock of the shotgun crashed into his jaw, coming into contact with such an almighty force that he over toppled sideways, the chair going with him. Unable to catch himself, his head smashed onto the solid floor but Vallory didn’t give him a chance to think about the pain of that. She tugged him up back up and grabbed him by the throat. Tightly curled fingers and long nails dug into his gullet and Rhys began to cry as he felt the tips of her nails drawing blood.

“I’m so sorry,” he croaked, looking at August. He wasn’t sorry for Vallory, the bitch had had it coming. But August…

Oh _August._

The man appeared pained but did nothing to suggest he would come to Rhys’s aid. He simply stood there and shook his head, shrugging his shoulders.

The muzzle of the shotgun was under his chin now. One pull of the trigger and his brain would be all over the ceiling. He closed his eyes, the last thing he saw being the malice in Vallory’s eyes and the sneer that curled her thin lips. He breathed.

He was going to die.

All of a sudden, the shotgun was removed and Rhys heard the sound of sloshing liquid. Two beefy men - Vallory’s henchmen - carried in a large vat of what looked like water.

“You really think that I’d give you the pleasure of a shot to the head? That I'd let you get off so lightly?” Vallory tucked the gun into its holster before snatching a cloth from the hands of her brute. “Put him on the table.”.

Doing his best, despite the agony coursing through various parts of his body, Rhys attempted to fight off the henchmen but it was to no avail. They untied him and tied him to the table quicker than he could from coherent thought. His eyes darted to August who remained stock still; almost frozen, in fact.

Vallory loomed over him. Suddenly, August unfroze, looking frantic, and for a moment Rhys felt a glimmer of hope.

“Ma, you can’t - don’t _do_ this.”

Vallory considered her son for a moment before throwing back her head and cackling, loud and cruel.

“Please, Ma! Just make it quick." He held out his own gun and his eyes met Rhys’s for the briefest of moments. “You don’t have to torture him-”

“-Shut _up_ , August. Don’t make this harder on yourself.” Her icy glare slid down to Rhys as she shoved her son away. “He loved you, you know,” she snapped, slapping the cloth over his mouth. “He was willing to die for you and you knew that when you took his money. The money that would have bought us a _permanent_ base of operations. You knew how much he’d give to make you happy but no, your happiness was apparently elsewhere.” She gestured at the sky, at what he imagined was Helios. “I hope the betrayal of my son rots with you in hell, you piece of shit.”

The table dropped back, leaving Rhys with his tied feet pointing at an angle towards the corner of the room.

Vallory was out of sight for only a brief period, but in that time he heard water being collected.

He knew what was coming. It was what Vallory was best known for across Western Pandora. Her favourite torture method.

 _“Don’t you just love the idea that you can make someone feel like death but not give them the pleasure of dying?”_ she had once said over drinks at The Purple Skag.

Those days were long since passed.

Rhys closed his eyes and took his last deep breath.

*

The car shot to Lynchwood at the fastest speed Jack could manage. The caravan rattled along behind, barely within sight through the rear-view mirror. His heart was in his throat as Fiona’s last words to him played over and over again in his head.

“She’ll kill him, Jack.”

It was difficult to keep the steering wheel in his grasp due to his sweating hands and the horizon was blurred by something in Jack’s eyes. He rubbed at them furiously, but the blur kept returning within seconds. His eyes stung and they were beginning to feel heavy. A few blinks and wetness rolled down his cheeks. He sniffed, the inside of his nose agony as he tried hard to hold himself together. He wasn’t ready to lose Rhys.

He’d never be ready to lose Rhys.  

Wait...was he _crying_?

Jack tightened his grip on the wheel and whined at the back of his throat, losing it completely. His shoulders shook, sobs ripping themselves out of him as images of Rhys, dead on the ground, left to rot, flashed across his mind. All that spark, that wonderful mind and beautiful, smiling face...gone. Jack shook himself.

 _No._ That would _not_ happen. Not on his watch.

Turning the steering wheel with a jerk, he pulled into Lynchwood and rolled up outside of the Sheriff’s Office.

“Nisha?!” he yelled, slamming the car door behind him. “Nisha! Are you in there?!”

As if on cue, the door to the office opened but to his surprise it was Wilhelm who stepped out into the blistering sun.

“Jackie?” He shielded his eyes from the light. “Is that you?”

“Wilhelm?” Jack mouthed, walking towards the man with his hand outstretched. “What are you doing here?”

Wilhelm shook his hand firmly and smirked. “Kadam’s had me wrapped round her little finger since we arrived on this godforsaken planet. Finally got me pulling some shifts at the office. We’ve actually only just swapped over, she’s inside if you want her?” Wilhelm squinted his eyes. "Wait...holy shit. Are you alright, kid?"

Jack swung back on his heels and rubbed his neck, taking a shuddering breath. Wilhelm raised an eyebrow.

“No, actually,” he replied. “I need your help.”

*

Nisha picked a piece of dirt off of her gun as she chewed the inside of her cheek, unsure of what to say. The Sheriff and her enforcer had agreed to act as extra firepower for their old friend Jack, whom they had grown up with on Eden 3. The two had come to Pandora for a change of scenery and to see what all the fuss was about. Nisha had quickly taken to Lynchwood and its various bloodthirsty factions, deciding to do what she knew best and get control of the situation there. They owed Jack for a lot of shit back in the day, so they felt it was only necessary to pay back the favour.

Wilhelm had taken the wheel, seeing as both he and Nisha had deemed Jack unfit to drive in the state he was in. He sat shaking at the back, hands clenched around his own pistol. His eyebrows were low and he literally resonated fury.

“You love him?” Nisha asked, leaving her gun alone and sitting back in the seat. Jack nodded, not taking his eyes off of the road ahead. The caravan was now in front, leading the way to where they assumed Vallory had taken Rhys.

“It’s not like you to love anyone but that kid of yours.” Her tone was cold and poignant and it struck Jack hard.

“Can we not talk about that right now?” he snapped, glaring. “It’s not exactly the right time.”

Nisha pulled a face and shrugged, turning back to face the direction of travel. “Just sayin’.”

After an hour, the caravan began to slow. When it came to a halt, Sasha and Fiona clambered out, their faces still as solemn as the last time Jack had seen them. Jack didn’t doubt that he looked the same.

“It’s on foot from here,” Sasha remarked. “We can’t risk driving too close and being seen.”

They moved out. Fiona lead the way.

*

“That’s enough!” August yelled, hopeless. “You’ve done _enough_!”

Vallory pushed the boy to the floor as he approached, trying to stop her. Two brutes grabbed him by the arms and dragged him away, kicking and screaming that even Rhys didn’t deserve his punishment. Rhys had been brought out of the torture a few times now and by this point he could have passed as a dead man. His eyes were rolling and he could no longer think at all. It was as though someone had wiped the slate clean inside of his head.

He’d never felt this much pain.

“For every penny I lost to you, it’s another second of fun,” Vallory sneered, holding his arm and squeezing. “That’s a whole lot of seconds, kid. Hope you’re ready for round four.” She pushed his lolling head back against the table. “Who knows, maybe after the next round I’ll shoot your brains out.” She brought her mouth close to his ear once again. “If I’m feeling _nice_.”

*

The shack appeared to be nothing more than an isolated outpost in the middle of nowhere. But through the sight of Wilhelm’s sniper, they took it in turns to locate the brute standing guard at the small entrance on the far side of the building.

“That’s definitely one of hers,” Sasha muttered, dropping her binoculars. She glanced at the others, shrugging. “Vallory doesn’t know we’re aware of this place but it’s not my fault her idiot henchmen talk when they’ve drunk a bit too much at the Skag.”

“We don’t know how many are inside,” Jack mused, peering down the sight once again. “God,” he muttered, lowering the weapon which Wilhelm removed from his grasp. “Rhys is the only one of the two of us with communications to Helios because my ECHO stopped working when we got down here.” Jack slammed his fist down on a nearby rock. “We could have called a dozen Loader Bots down by now to have wiped out this sorry excuse for a woman.”

“You’ll get your chance,” Wilhelm said, looking down the sight at the henchmen on guard duty. He took aim and pulled the trigger, his silencer working a treat at not drawing attention. “Just as soon as we get down there and kill all her other sons of bitches.”


	11. Dying

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoops! Sorry, I know it's been a while since I updated. I've been very invested in Shadowhunters and Malec (I highly recommend btw).
> 
> Anyway! I hope you enjoy the chapter. It's more of a filler but I need it for plot development!

Guns had not been a necessity for those who lived on Eden 3. The planet was rich and plentiful, with no need for hand-to-hand combat or shooting from the hip to get what you wanted. Jack had never even handled a loaded weapon until he worked for Hyperion, who had had (and still remained to have) a very large presence on Eden 3. Their red and black colours and insignia adorned the sides of buildings and the body paint of cars. The huge Hyperion base on Eden 3 rose high above the rest of the skyscrapers, casting a vast shadow across a portion of the capital. Jack had always wondered why they needed a base on a mostly weaponless planet, but had learnt during his time on Helios that Eden 3 was a halfway point between Pandora and the Helix, another ruthless excuse for a planet. So it made some sense.

Jack had loved the power that Hyperion had and how its roots spread out across the system. His whole life, he’d wanted to escape the cushioning, average life of Eden 3. He’d wanted _more._

Even when he got to Hyperion, however - when he was merely a coding monkey down in the mostly unsupervised depths of the spacestation - guns weren’t a regular sight unless you were at the end of one which belonged to some bloodthirsty higher-up. It was only when Jack was promoted to Head of Programming that he was issued with company-funded weapons-training every other day for three months straight. He’d been trained in shotguns, SMGs, snipers...you name it, he could shoot it with precision. All for the sake of his own self-protection. “Apparently”, he was an “asset to the company” or something. Not that he’d ever been treated as such by Tassiter or the board.

He’d never had a need to use his training as he’d always been accompanied to Pandora before and no one dared attack him on Helios for fear of death by Tassiter. Again, “asset” was a word passed around on occasion. It was only now on Pandora, during his travels with Rhys to the Eridium Mines, that Jack had held a gun with the intent to both kill and protect himself. He had not had time to dwell upon his actions from the previous evening, but as he clutched at his pistol and loaded the bullets, counting every one, a memorable tingle of the thrill he had experienced made his whole body shudder. Fiona had told him that he would regret everything when he was sober; that he would hate himself and never be able to look in the mirror again.

Yet here Jack Lawrence was, nine kills to his name, and he couldn’t bring himself to feel bad about it. He wondered if it was the focus he had on saving Rhys that was keeping those “bad feelings” at bay, but he highly doubted it. There was electricity in his veins and heat in his pants.

He _loved_ the feeling of the kill. As they grew closer to the outpost, his hand flexed and tightened around his weapon. He was eager to kill those who had taken what was his.

In fact, he was _excited_ to bring an end to their meaningless little lives. He _wanted_ to be the one to destroy Vallory once and for all; to watch her blow up into a thousand tiny pieces. A cruel, twisted smile slid onto his lips just thinking about it.

“Are you alright?” Sasha asked, placing a hand on his arm. This grounded him for a moment and he shook himself, eyes finding hers.

“Mmm,” was all he replied with, turning back to focus on the task at hand. It was nice that she cared. He liked Sasha and Fiona; he could see Rhys in them, and vice versa.

Wilhelm switched out his sniper for a weapon with closer-range and Jack re-checked his pistol. Nisha bumped him on the shoulder with her own and grinned.

“I see you’re using the gift I sent you during the holidays.”

Jack smirked, toying with the trigger. “I don’t want to imagine my boss's face when he finds out I’m not using a Hyperion-issued gun.”

“Ah but you _are_ using a Kadam exclusive. See if he can top that!” She flashed him a wink and another smile before Fiona turned on them all and whisper-shouted at them to “ _shut the fuck up!”_ before she threw up her middle finger and growled under her breath. Wilhelm raised his hands in defense but Jack sucked in a breath and nodded. It was time to save his boyfriend.

*

It took four deaths before anyone noticed something was amiss. The first shout of distress came from a man who crossed their path, looking down the hall to see the five of them stalking at a steady speed. The yelp was halted, however, when Nisha took him down with a swift shot. The noise had obviously alerted others though, as hurrying footsteps grew closer and closer with each passing moment. Jack readied his weapon, following closely behind Nisha who kept glancing back to make sure he was alright. At first he found this endearing, as she’d been trained in fighting since she was a girl, but soon it became frustrating; it was as though she believed he couldn’t look after himself.

They turned the corner and shots were fired from both sides. Jack managed to take down three henchmen, totalling his kill count at twelve. Once more, a jolt zipped through his system and warmed him through to his bones.

“Ah! Visitors!” came a shrill squawk. The wooden boards creaked as everyone tried to locate the direction of the sound. Jack’s grip tightened around his gun.

“It came from below,” he growled, stalking around the corner and taking out two oncoming brutes. As they crumpled to the floor, Jack smirked and steered around another corner which lead to some stairs winding into what appeared to be a basement. He was about to descend when Nisha grabbed him around the arm and tugged him back, a knowing look in her eyes.

“If you go first and don’t like what you see, you could go crazy and fuck this up for everyone, including Rhys.”

Jack went to argue, wanting to say how he desperately needed to see him, but there was a truth in Nisha’s words so instead he begrudgingly stepped aside.

The Sheriff crouched as she walked, keeping a hand behind her to ensure Jack didn’t dart past and ruin everything, which was absolutely his forte.

It was, in fact, Fiona and Sasha who ran past them as soon as Vallory came into view. Nisha had been so focused on Jack that she hadn’t considered the feisty sisters who were almost as thirsty for the kill as he was. The two stood side by side, shoulders rising and falling with their heavy breaths. Fiona’s eye twitched and Sasha was almost _growling._

“Where the hell is Rhys?” Fiona snapped, aiming between the eyes. Vallory raised her hands in meek defense, a grin playing on her lips which bore into Jack and fuelled his murderous rage.

“My dear,” she drawled, coughing in the process and leaning on the table beside her for...support? Jack glanced around; something wasn’t right. “As usual, you are last to the mark.”

Fiona’s straightened arm quivered. She lowered her eyebrows further.

“What?” Sasha blurted, cocking her gun. “Where is Rhys, Vallory? We _won’t_ ask again.”

At this, Vallory laughed, coughs intermingling throughout. She wiped her hand on the back of her sleeve, a trail of blood remaining behind on the pale material.

“It seems that the love my son has for that _boy_ is greater than the love he has for his goddamn mother,” she hissed, gripping the edge of the table. Jack felt himself go cold, a strange prickling feeling passing over his skin as though someone was holding a knife to his neck. _Someone else loved Rhys?_

Rhys had never mentioned whomever it was that Vallory was rattling on about. Something about that notion had Jack grinding his teeth.

“August?” Fiona tilted her head to the side, confused. “August took Rhys?”

Vallory waved her hand about dismissively. “Yes, yes. Stupid -- boy. He doesn’t have a hope in -- hell in surviving -- alone out there. _I_ certainly -- won’t be taking him back in, that’s for -- sure.” Her coughs had become worse now. Jack frowned. He wondered how badly this “August” had hurt his mother to get to Rhys. The thought concerned him. “Saying that -- he did take out my best guards.” She motioned at the three bodies scattered on the ground beside them that no one had bothered to notice until that point.

Sasha took a step forward. “Where would August have taken Rhys?”

The old witch cackled. She narrowed her eyes as she looked at each and every one of them in turn.

“Who knows? I couldn’t care less any more.”

When the unexpected gunshot rang, they sucked in a collective breath. In mere milliseconds, Vallory had whipped out a gun from her belt, placed it under her chin and pulled the trigger. Her body collapsed to the floor, blood and no doubt brains spilling out all over the walls and table. Despite her death, the twisted smile she had been wearing still remained.

*

“I was _so_ ready to end her,” Jack snarled, stomping out of the shack. “Why’d she have to go ruin all my fun and do it herself?”

Fiona raised an eyebrow but said nothing. Sasha, on the other hand, was pacing back and forth, babbling about something to do with Rhys and... _August._

“Makes sense,” Nisha said with a shrug. “She wouldn’t have gotten out of there alive anyways. I’d have done it.”

“I mean, I know that Vallory has a hideout up in the caves just North of here but I highly doubt he would have taken Rhys to somewhere Vallory knows…” Sasha wrung her wrists, distraught. “I can’t...I can’t even _think_ right now!”

Fiona chewed at her lip. “Do you think August was even angrier at him for what he did?”

“What, angrier than Vallory? No,” Sasha shook her head. “I’ve...spoken to August since Rhys left for Hyperion and he uh…” She cast a glance at Jack, who folded his arms as he stared at her. She lowered her voice to a whisper. “He’s still in deep.”

“Shit. Well that’s good then, I guess.”

“Whilst I appreciate you’re having a family chat,” Jack sighed, clapping his hands together and stepping in between them, “I would rather like to find Rhys and get off of this godforsaken planet once and for all, thank you.”

Fiona opened her mouth to respond, no doubt with something sharp and bitter, when something bleeped in her pocket. She dropped her eyes from Jack’s, narrowing them before she did so, and tugged out an ECHO device. Her eyes grew wide.

“It’s August!”

Holding it out for everyone to hear, she answered.

“ _Fi, is that you? Fuck - fuck where are you?”_ He was breathless, but he sounded dumb, Jack thought to himself. Stupid, dumb Pandoran asshole.

“August?” Fiona pulled the ECHO back to herself as everyone crowded around. “What’s wrong?”

_“Oh shit, what the fuck, I’m at the Skag, why aren’t you - why aren’t you - oh shit. Where the fuck are you, answer the goddamn question!”_

“We came looking for Vallory! We’ve been looking for Rhys and she said-”

_“I’ve got him! He’s...oh man. Fi, Sash, please - I can’t - I don’t know how much longer -”_

“What happened?”  They were already moving at a fast pace now, heading back towards the truck. “August, what’s wrong with Rhys?”

 _“She - she was waterboarding him and then...then she started actually drowing him...and...she went so far, I had to stop her or...but he’s almost… ah fuck.”_ There was a crackling sound. Jack’s heart was in his throat. Things didn’t sound good at all.   _“No no, Rhys. Stay with me. We’ve got this far. Come on, Rhys.”_ His voice was further away now, as though he'd dropped the comms, but the words had Jack running full speed.

There was no way Rhys was going to die - not in the arms of _that_ loser, anyway.


	12. Blue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shit, I am so sorry. It's been so long since I updated - I've had a pretty crap month to be honest. I haven't had the drive to write. However, due to some lovely messages and potential fan art being drawn, I've had the kick up the ass I needed to write more. 
> 
> I must say, this is a long chapter so think of it as an apology for not updating sooner. 
> 
> I love you all and I look forward to hearing what you think!! 
> 
> (Once again, thank you to @shippingismypersonalhell on Tumblr for being such a fabulous beta!)

The drive to the Purple Skag was gruelling, to say the least. Nisha had taken over driving, after a brief argument with Fiona and Sasha that she was the top of her class at the Driving School on Eden 3.

Wilhelm’s arm had come to rest around Jack’s shoulders, providing a comfort that Jack could barely allow himself to reach out for. Rhys was most likely dying and he couldn’t get the thought out of his head that they might arrive too late.  How the best thing that had happened to him in years might be gone as fast as he had appeared. Jack’s shudder received him a squeeze on his shoulder and he leant against his friend, drawing in a shaky breath and scrunching his eyes up tight.

Fiona and Sasha were huddled together on the other side of the caravan, as silent as the grave. Whilst Fiona stared into nothingness, face ashen and drawn, Sasha shook with occasional, muffled sobs that managed to crawl their way out of her. It was clear that she was trying her best to hold them in, but with each heartbreaking whimper, Jack grew more and more anxious. He began tapping his leg, looking about for something, _anything,_  to distract him from the nightmarish thoughts of Rhys on the ground...barely breathing...chest struggling to rise and fall...

“Hey,” Wilhelm announced, naturally gruff but yet unnaturally soft, “It’s going to be alright.” It appeared that he was addressing the entire caravan, not only Jack.  “We’ll be there soon.”

Jack squeezed his eyes shut and pressed at them with the bottoms of his palms.

“I can’t lose him. I just can’t.”

Wilhelm stretched and sighed. “I know.”

*

When they reached the cavernous opening to Hollow Point, Fiona, Sasha and Jack were like meerkats, ready to spring out of the vehicle at any moment. In retrospect, Jack should have noticed the red and black colours on the cars outside that grew in number the closer the caravan got to the bar. It was only when they pulled up that Jack furrowed his brow at a sleek black limousine, with its adorning Hyperion flags, parked to the side of the Skag.

“Who is that?” Fiona said, speaking for the first time in a while.  She opened the caravan door and craned her neck. “I haven’t seen them around here before.”

There was a tightness in Jack’s chest. News must have somehow gotten back to Helios about what had happened to Rhys.

“It’s Hyperion,” he growled, slamming the door behind him.

*

Leading the four of them inside, Jack threw the door to the Skag open and took in what lay before him. Rhys - _Oh_ , _Rhys_ \- was lying on a stretcher near the bar, paramedics in Hyperion colours tending to him with various medical instruments.  His face was almost sheet-white and Jack could see the whites of his eyes where his eyelids had fallen open slightly. To Jack, he looked like death.

“Rhys!” the programmer shouted in a chorus with Fiona and Sasha. The three moved towards him but a thin, willowy figure stepped into their path.  Jack balked when he realised who it was.

“Ah, Mr. Lawrence,” Tassiter said with a smirk. “Good to see that _you’re_ still well and breathing.” He cast a glance back at Rhys before turning back to them. “Stupid idiot went and got himself tortured by some ghastly Pandoran.” He tutted. “I’m sorry that he dragged you along on his little side-quest, Mr. Lawrence. August over there told me that he was here visiting family.” The CEO motioned at a blonde man seated at the bar with his head in his hands. Tassiter straightened his tie. “I do not believe that in the instructions I gave, I said to make any trips off-course. I’m sorry that you got caught up in all of this.”  
“How did you...how did you find us?” Jack blurted, trying to compute Tassiter’s words and also trying to work with the CEO’s ignorance regarding the relationship between himself and Rhys. Grinning, Tassiter tapped the ECHO at his hip.

“My PA sent out a distress signal from his ECHO not long after you’d arrived on Pandora. I’m assuming the signal was sent just as he was captured.” The tall man sniffed. “It’s safe to say that I am not impressed with his behaviour. I will be taking him back to Pandora so that…” The man paused for a moment, looking as though he was in deep thought, “...he can _heal_.”

Jack’s eyes darted to Rhys, who hadn’t moved since they’d stepped into the Skag.

“When are we leaving?”

All Jack wanted was to be home where he could care for Rhys and see him get back to his normal self. He couldn’t wait to be back on Helios where it was _safe_.

Tassiter laughed. It was fake and pained. “Oh Mr. Lawrence! Those Eridium mines won’t fix themselves! I still need you to complete the job before you can come back to Helios.”  

Jack didn’t know what to say or do. The thought that he couldn’t be at Rhys’s bedside was too much to handle. The thought of continuing working whilst Rhys fought between life and death was...was…

He felt himself begin to shake; his fists balled up at his sides and his cheeks burned. His eyes were fixed on Rhys, who groaned and shifted ever so slightly on the stretcher.

“Is there a problem?”

Jack continued to stare at his boyfriend, anger, sadness and disbelief clogging his mind. A dark shape moved in front of his face.

“I said, is there a _problem_ , Mr. Lawrence.” Jack shook himself. Tassiter had folded his arms and was regarding him sternly.

“No sir,” he muttered, trying to swallow but failing. “Not at all.”

*

Tassiter had agreed to let Jack rest in Hollowpoint that night before heading off to the mines. The notion of Jack “resting” was of course, ridiculous. Instead, he was pacing back and forth in the Skag, running his hands through his hair and trying to work out what the hell to do about his situation. He felt as though his blood was boiling and all he wanted to do was either punch someone in the face or straight up kill them where they stood. His fingers itched to be wrapped around someone’s throat.

“How the hell did he know where Rhys was?” he hissed through his teeth, stopping to swipe some empty bottles from the bar onto the floor. The crashing sound which followed had Nisha on her feet, coming to grab his wrists and hold him in place. He hated that she was equally as strong as he was, if not slightly more so.

“It’s like he said. Rhys sent out a distress signal and Tassiter picked it up. Now will you stop trying to destroy the place?”

“But Rhys would never have let on to Tassiter that he wasn’t doing _exactly_ as he asked. He would rather die than send out that signal.” In a moment of rage, Jack tore free from Nisha and stomped across the bar, going to sit down but then deciding not to. He wasn’t sure what to do with himself. “There has to be another explanation.”

“Look, can you just calm the _hell_ down?” Sasha shrieked, causing a silence to ripple through the place. She was on her feet, the glass that she had been holding now cracked in her hand. “You’re not the only one feeling like shit here, Jack. You’ve known Rhys for a few months, we’ve known him our entire _lives_ -”

“Yeah?” Jack snarled, squaring up to the short, infuriated woman, “So explain to me why he was _so_ eager to leave this place as soon as he could?”

This caught Sasha out. She blinked, jaw falling open. A small, indignant noise fell from her mouth and Jack leered at her. He was about to make another comment but something smacked him solidly on his own jaw. The force of the impact had him reeling, stumbling away so that maybe it wouldn’t happen again. He gripped at his face, whirling around to glare at Fiona, who was now standing with her gun aimed at his chest.

“Get out,” she snapped. “ And don’t you dare step foot in this place again.”

Jack chuckled darkly, sweeping his gaze around the bar. August had his gun trained on his forehead, a look of malice in his eyes.  The two had barely had a chance to talk, but Jack wasn’t going to cry over that fact. Raising his hands, the programmer backed away towards the door.

“It would be my pleasure,” he hissed as Wilhelm opened the door behind him. With that, he turned on his heel and walked away.

*

“That was hilarious,” Nisha cackled, slamming the door shut to the truck they’d broken into. “Class-A comment. I couldn’t have done it better myself.”

Jack remained silent and climbed into the back. He knew he shouldn’t have said that. He knew it would come back to bite him in the ass. With a sigh, he sat down in his seat and leant his head against the cool glass of the window.

“Well I think it’s safe to say that we can’t drink there again,” Wilhelm added, settling himself down. “Now then, Jackie. Where to?”

Jack shrugged. “Just drop me off at the train station.”

From the driver’s seat, Nisha laughed again. “Oh please. You think we’re letting you traipse across the desert in your state of mind? Whilst I enjoy the occasional innocent murder, I don’t really want the slaughter of an entire village to be on my conscience.”

“I wouldn’t _slaughter_ an entire _village,_ ” Jack grumbled, but with how his hand was flexing on his knee, he knew he couldn’t be certain of that. “Look, you guys have done enough. It’s a days journey to the mines! You really don’t need to take me all the way there. ”  
“No,” Wilhelm began, lighting a cigar, “but we will.”

“Also, I’ve always wanted to see the mines up close because that shit is _cool_.”

Rolling his eyes, Jack laughed quietly. At least his journey to the mines might keep his mind off of Rhys.

*

“What the _fuck_ have you been up to down here, then?” Jack announced, leaning over the railings and staring down at the bustling workers below. His voice boomed across the space, causing them all to stop in the tracks and stare up at him with startled eyes. “My programming is supposed to _last_ , ladies and gentlemen. So what fuckwad decided to press the wrong button?” He walked slowly down the metal steps, making eye contact with as many workers as possible. They seemed frozen and in all honesty, scared shitless. A sense of power washed through him and it felt _incredible._ In this place, he was way above these losers. He was the _boss_. This Eridium mine was his baby and he’d brought her into the world. Given her _life._

And _someone_ had screwed everything up.

“So this is no one’s fault, huh? The mining equipment just _happened_ to mine rocks instead of Eridium?” He laughed as he ran a hand along the large tank that was embedded into the wall. “Because you know who looks like a moron right now? To the big guy?” He placed a hand on his chest and closed his eyes. “Me.”

“Mr. Lawrence, please let me take your jacket and we’ll get started-”

Opening his eyes abruptly, Jack stared down at a laughably short man with glasses that made his eyes the size of Elpis. Jack smirked and bent down so they were face level. The man blushed deeply and appeared to be disgruntled.

“I’m sorry, short stuff. Did I stutter?”

“No sir, I-”

“I believe I asked who pressed the wrong. damn. _button_.”

“Well it wasn’t a _button_ per se, it was a coding blip due to a misunderstanding by one of our interns.”

The hair on Jack’s neck bristled.

_Intern._

“An...wait…” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “You let an _intern_ code the mining equipment? The fucking _mining_ equipment _?!”_

The man fumbled with his glasses and the papers in his arms. “Well he’s usually very competent, sir, I-”

Jack grabbed him by the collar and hoisted him into the air as he straightened up. “Bring me the goddamn intern, cupcake. I’d like to have a little... _chat_.”

*

The kid must have been barely nineteen. He was perched on the chair behind the desk, on which Jack had placed his feet. He had closed his eyes and placed his hands behind his head when the kid had sat down, and by now twenty minutes had passed. He was surprised the kid hadn’t said anything. He was waiting to see if he had any balls.

“So,” Jack sighed eventually, dropping his feet and sitting forward. He clasped his hands together and leant forward on the desk. “You’re probably wondering why I called you in here today, Michael.”  
“Well sir, I have to say I am _so_ sorry-”

“Do I look like I’m in the mood for _I’m sorry_ , kiddo?” He pushed himself to his feet, towering over the blubbering excuse for a “young man”.

“Honestly, I can understand why you’re mad-”

“Mad?” Jack laughed under his breath. “Because of…” Jack paused to suck in a breath and he placed his hands together, letting it out slowly. “Because of _you_ , someone I care for deeply is in a very bad way.”

“Oh god I-”

“-and I don’t think _I’m sorry_ is gonna quite cut the cake, sweetheart. I think, in actual fact, it might just be the most insulting thing anyone’s said to me all day.”

Jack was now on the other side of his desk, casting his shadow across the boy. His hand came down like a vice on his throat, tugging him up and out of the seat. He knew that the rest of the workers could see them through the window.

He didn’t care.

He wouldn’t have cared if the entirety of Hyperion were watching.

“You think that you can touch this equipment again after this?” he growled, tightening his grip. “You think that you can walk out of here after a smack on the hand and an ‘oops sorry I won’t do it again?’”

The kid was transitioning from red to blue. _What a pretty colour,_ Jack thought decidedly. The boy was also squirming significantly less.

There were more workers outside now, staring up at him through the glass. He walked the boy over the window and held him up for all to see. His other hand reached over and pressed the speaker button.

“Now then, you little shitstains. This here is what’s gonna happen if you fuck this up for me again.” Jack squeezed his hardest and felt the kid’s damn windpipe crack in his palm. There was another struggle and then...stillness. The sudden weight of the kid’s entire body had Jack dropping him onto the ground.

A cold sensation travelled down his neck, slipping its way down his spine and coalescing in the pit of his stomach. He could no longer feel the chill air that swept through the place from the caverns of the mines. His hands shook as he gazed down at the body on the floor. For a moment, he wasn’t quite sure what to think.

However, as he continued to gaze down upon what he had done, he felt a strange calming sensation settle upon him. He was no longer angry or upset about the mining issue. Even thoughts of Rhys had drifted away from the forefront of his mind somewhat.

“Get back to work,” he announced before leaning to flick the speaker off, eyes still on the boy - Michael, was it? Rolling his eyes, he clicked the speaker button one more time. “Shit, how long does it take to get a cleaner in here? Get rid of this body _now._ ”

So that was it. Jack had done his job. He’d gotten rid of the problem. Now they’d never let an intern code the mining equipment again.

Jack turned, set on fixing the mining programme, when the new ECHO device Tassiter had issued him bleeped to indicate a call. The moment he saw who it was, he hastily pressed accept.

“Rhys?” Jack gasped, the calmness now gone entirely. He gripped the edge of the desk, dropping into the chair. “Is that you?”

“Hey,” Rhys replied. His voice was awfully weak. Jack chewed down on his lip. “I can’t talk for long. Tassiter keeps uh...he keeps checking in on me every once in a while.”

“Oh kitten, it’s so good to hear your voice. Are you okay?”

“Well, no. Not really. Being near-drowned isn’t my idea of fun.”

Jack couldn’t help but laugh before swallowing and remembering just why Rhys wasn’t feeling okay.

“I thought you were going to die, Rhysie,” he said quietly, watching as two babbling men entered the office. They apprehensively eyed the body, but Jack’s snarl had them hoisting it up and dragging it out within seconds. “I’ve never been so scared in my life.”

“I’m so sorry, Jack.” Rhys was obviously crying. Jack squeezed his eyes shut, fighting back his own tears. Jack didn’t cry. Not when he could help it.

“Oh babe, you have nothing to apologise for. I’m just sorry that Tassiter made me stay down here and not come back with you.”

Rhys’s breath was shallow. “I’m glad you didn’t let our cover slip. You could’ve - I know how angry you can get.” Jack smirked, watching the men carrying the body through the window. “I love you. Hurry back though, okay?”

Smiling, Jack leant back in the chair. “I love you too, kitten. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

There was a fumbling on the other end of the line. “Shit, Tassiter’s here. I’ve got to go.”

Rhys sounded...terrified.

“Okay well-”

The line went dead.


	13. Angel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BOOM. I stayed up late to write this. yoU'RE WELCOME<3

It took Jack hours to find the problem in the mining codes. He very almost killed another few dozen people in the process but managed to restrain himself.  He didn’t want the place to be understaffed, after all. After a quick call with Tassiter discussing the fix, he was granted permission to return to Helios.  With a fluttering stomach, Jack packed up his things. Before leaving the pokey office, his eyes once again found the cabinet filled with random eridium ores. He’d been admiring it all day; the glittering purple glow filled the office and it was truly beautiful to behold. As he went to walk out of the door, he couldn’t help but slide the glass front to the cabinet open. There was a small piece of eridium that would fit nicely on a necklace chain for Angel…

...He pocketed it swiftly.

*

Thankfully, though Jack couldn’t quite understand why they did, Nisha and Wilhelm had hung around the facility “just checking it out” for the entire time Jack had been down fixing the equipment. They offered to take him back to the Hyperion launch pad as long as he promised to buy all their drinks for them the next time he was on Pandora. He’d quickly agreed, but he didn’t say that he probably wouldn’t be coming back. Ever.

Tassiter had assured Jack that there would be a shuttle waiting for him at the launch pad. The place was owned and run by Hyperion, making travel to and from Pandora much easier. Rhys and Jack had had to land in the desert to help protect the location of the Eridium mines from dirty Pandoran smugglers. Sure enough, there was a shuttle on the pad when the truck pulled up just beyond the entrance. Nisha spun around in her seat and tipped her hat to him.

“Till next time. Don’t be a stranger.”

Wilhelm clapped him on the back but remained silent, lighting another cigar and grinning as he placed it between his teeth.

“Thanks for everything guys. I definitely owe you those drinks.” He slipped out of the truck, winking as he went, before quick-marching to the launch pad so that he could finally be reunited with Rhys.

*

It felt like the shuttle had taken days to make it to Helios. The moment it had docked, Jack was jumping off and running to the nearest elevator. He punched in the hospital wing floor and tapped his foot nervously as the numbers of the floor rose and rose. With a _ping_ , the doors slid open and he straightened his jacket, walking casually over to the nurse at the front desk. He couldn’t appear nervous or worried in front of her; from this point on, Jack barely knew Rhys in public.

“Hi,” he said, leaning on the desk and flashing her a smile. “I’m looking for Rhys? He came in here yesterday morning with Mr. Tassiter.”

The nurse glanced up at him, indifferent, and proceeded to tap away at her computer.

“He was discharged late last night, sir.”

Jack’s eye grew wide and he leant back in disbelief. “No, no, he came in yesterday. There’s no way he could-”

“It appears that Mr. Tassiter paid for him to have an Insta-Health Vial at the company’s expense. Very kind of him if I do say - not many people receive such treatment from the CEO. None in my living memory, that’s for sure.”

Confused, Jack backed away. He couldn’t work out why Tassiter would have given him such special treatment after what he had done down on Pandora. Not wanting to be in the wing any longer, Jack entered the elevator.

He had to find Rhys.

*

Rhys wasn’t answering his ECHO comms. There was also no one at his apartment. Jack visited Angel at school to let her know he was back before continuing his journey to find his boyfriend. The only other place he could think he _might_ be was at work, but he hoped he wasn’t only one day after almost dying.

“Sir, Mr. Lawrence is here to see you.” The guard leant back from the speaker and frowned at Jack, who frowned right back.

“Ah! Let him in.”

The door buzzed open and Jack stepped inside. Disbelief washed through him when he saw Rhys seated at his desk, gawping at Jack.

“Hello Rhys,” Jack said as he passed. “Glad to see you’re feeling better.”

“Uh, yes I am. Thank you, Mr. Lawrence.”

So this was where Rhys was.

*

Finishing his discussion with Tassiter on the Eridium mine problems, Jack walked past Rhys and offered him a concerned smile, just for appearances sake. Rhys suddenly looked like a rabbit caught in headlights.

“Sir, would you like me to get you a coffee?”

Tassiter turned from gazing out of the window and shrugged. “I suppose. Get Mr. Lawrence one on my tab. He did a fantastic job down on Pandora. It’s the _least_ he deserves.”

The words seemed to drip from his tongue like poison, but Jack couldn’t work out why. He followed Rhys out of the door and into the elevator. The two stood opposite one another, waiting for the doors to close. When they clicked shut, Jack swept Rhys up into his arms and kissed him furiously.

“ _You_ ,” he managed between kisses, “I’m never letting you out of my sight again.”

“I’d like that,” Rhys whispered before pressing Jack up against the wall and running his fingers up under his shirt. “I’d like that a lot.”

The elevator slowed and they pulled apart, repositioning their clothing just before a group of programmers joined them inside.

Usually, Jack enjoyed friendly banter with these guys. He worked with them on a daily basis. However, they all stood away on the other side of the elevator, not speaking and eyeing him cautiously.

“Do I have something on my face?” Jack snapped. “If you have something to say to me, say it.”

“We heard what you did on Pandora,” Percival hissed, but he caught himself and stepped back into the group.

“Killing Michael like that? Shit, man.”

Jack ignored the expression on Rhys’s face that he could see from the corner of his eye.

“I suggest,” he replied, taking a menacing step forward. The men cowered, pushing to be at the back of the group. “I suggest that you keep your mouths shut about that before I sew them shut for you. You got that?”

They all stumbled out at the next floor, leaving Jack and Rhys alone again.

“You killed someone? Again?” Rhys had folded his own arms now. Jack couldn’t read his expression.

“Yes. He fucked up the mining codes, which was why we went down to Pandora. Which was _why_ you got captured and nearly got killed.”

“Soooo...you killed him.”

“Yes,” Jack retorted, with no hesitation. “Is that a problem, Rhys?"

"I’m just...surprised, I guess. You haven’t acted on your anger like that before.”

Jack was unsure what Rhys was trying to do. Was he mad? Or…? Rhys tugged on Jack’s lapels and brought him down for another kiss. That answered _that_ question.

“So you... _like_ that I murdered a bunch of people?” Jack held Rhys by the arms and looked him in the eyes. They were dark and filled with what appeared to be lust.

“I like that you murdered them for _me_ ,” Rhys said under his breath, pressing his lips against Jack’s ear. “Is that... _bad_?”

Jack felt his erection twitch in his pants. He turned them around and pinned Rhys to the wall, catching his neck with his teeth.

“ _So_ bad,” he growled, kissing him until they reached their floor and Rhys had to go and get Tassiter’s coffee.

*

Jack had been given the rest of the day off by Tassiter, so he picked Angel up from school and they got ice-cream together in Tassiter Hall. As she licked her cone, Jack leant on his hand and watched her lovingly.

“I missed you whilst I was gone,” he said, smiling. She beamed back, offering her ice-cream towards him. He took a lick, savouring the strawberry flavour. She took it back quickly.

“Jeez, don’t eat it all daddy,” she muttered, biting a little off the cone. “Did you get me a present from Pandora?”

Jack grinned wider. “How did you know?”

Angel shrugged, prodding her ice-cream with her finger. “I don’t know. Just had a feeling.”

Reaching into his pocket, Jack pulled out the eridium ore from his pocket. The emanating glow illuminated her blue eyes beautifully.

“I’m going to attach it to a chain for you, baby girl. It’ll look gorgeous on you.” He ran a thumb down her cheek as she reached out for the ore. Her fingers clasped around it as she giggled.

It was then that her face convulsed, her face turned white and she fell off of her chair, hitting the floor with a dull thump.

This all happened in a blur.  When Jack registered what had happened, he threw himself into action and scooped her up into his arms. He didn’t know what to do at first. He could only stand there and shake, his baby girl writhing in his arms. Her eyes had rolled into the back of her head.

“Get a doctor!” he yelled suddenly - at someone; anyone. He needed help. _Angel_ needed help. Things were happening around him: people were crowding, people were on their comms. Eventually someone shouted that a doctor was coming and that Jack should meet him at the South elevator. Jack was only able to move through people guiding him. His eyes were locked on Angel, brushing her hair out of her eyes and clutching her close.

“Don’t you do this to me, Angel,” he wept, tears coming hard and fast. “Don’t you dare.”

Apparently a doctor had appeared, because people were begging Jack to give Angel over to them. It took them effort to prise her from his fingertips but soon she was on a stretcher, doctors barking things at each other as they carried her into the elevator. Jack followed, but he could only manage a few steps inside before he backed up against the wall, slid to the floor and cried.

*

Angel had been semi-stable for five minutes when Rhys fell into the room. Jack glanced up, eyes glassy. His hand was curled around his daughter’s.

“Oh my god, Jack. What happened?” Rhys rushed over to his boyfriend’s side, wrapping his arms around him and pulling him close. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t be here sooner.”

“She had a fit. That’s what the doctors are saying. Apparently it might be something she suffers from for life.”

“Oh.” Rhys’s hand flew to his mouth as he gazed down at Angel. Her chest rose and fall, shuddering sometimes in between. He walked around to the other side of the bed and took her other hand in his own. “Well, we’ll just have to make sure she gets the right medicine.”

Jack nodded, biting back tears. “It all happened so suddenly. Nothing like this has ever happened before. I didn’t…” He took a deep breath but the tears fell despite his best efforts. “I didn’t _do_ anything to help her.”

“You called for a doctor. You carried her to the elevator. You aren’t a doctor, Jack. No parent would know what to do in that situation. Hell, _I_ wouldn’t!”

“I know, I know.” Jack rubbed his temples and sat back in his chair. “I just felt like a failure.”

“Well you’re not. You’re-” Rhys stopped mid-sentence, which was unusual for Rhys because he liked to talk. Jack looked over and saw Rhys staring down at Angel in shock. When he looked down, shock rattled through him too. Her eyes were wide open, but her irises were glowing white. Rhys jumped, letting go of her wrist.

“Jack…” A white pattern began snaking its way along her forearm, up towards her shoulder. “Jac, what’s happening…?”  
“I don’t know. Wait…” The patterns. The glowing… Jack had an idea-

The room went black. Jack felt himself smack against a solid surface which sucked the air out of his lungs. A white light erupted from Angel as he dropped to the ground. He’d been thrown ten feet from the chair. Rhys was on the other side of the room, rubbing his head. The white light ebbed away, as did the lights of her eyes and arms. Her eyelids fell shut. Everything seemed normal, aside from overturned chairs and a broken vase.

“Holy shit.”

“Jack, someone’s coming.”

They hurriedly picked up the chairs and brushed off the broken glass. Both resumed their positions from before. Deep down, they both were thinking the same thing.

“My goodness, is everything alright?” a nurse shrieked as she burst through the door. “I heard the most awful sound!”

Jack turned, smiling. “Sorry ma’m. I’m not sure what you’re talking about. We’re all fine in here. Thanks to your fantastic team.”

She stood in the doorway for a moment, caught in some mass confusion. After a moment she smiled quickly and nodded, closing the door behind her.

“Jack, what the hell? Is she a Siren?”

“Shut _up_ Rhys! I don’t k-know.” Jack leant over the bed and took Angel into his arms. “All I do know is that she’s not safe here. Not when she could be bundled off to some... _institute_ or….or _zoo_ if anyone finds out about...about whatever this is _._ We have to get her back to the apartment.”

*

“No but sir, she is still under observation!”

“I don’t care,” Jack snarled, “I want her in the comfort of her own home.”

The nurse followed them down the hall, all the way to the elevator. “Sir, I must insist.”

Rhys spun on his heel. “And _I_ must insist that you step down, madam. The man has made his decision. Don’t you dare question it any more.”

With that, the elevator doors slid closed. Both Jack and Rhys heaved a sigh of relief.

*

Jack decided that Angel would need constant observation. He called his work and stated that he was sick.

“Must be some kind of Pandoran flu,” he had said, coughing and spluttering as he went. With work out of the way, Jack settled down beside her bed and held her hand. Rhys came in carrying two coffees.

“I told Tassiter that I felt sick too,” he said, settling down on the chair that sat beside Jack. “When I left to come and see you, that is. But I can’t blame Pandoran flu, not after the Insta-Health cured all my ailments. I’ll have to go back to work tomorrow.”

“It’s okay,” Jack sighed, patting Rhys’s leg. The tall man yelped in agony, pulling away swiftly and clutching his leg. “...What the fuck, Rhys?”

“I-I just didn’t expect you to do that, that’s all,” Rhys blurted, not meeting his eyes. Jack stood abruptly.

“No, that was something else. What _was_ that?”

“Must’ve been an electric shock,” Rhys chuckled uncertainly. He stood too, moving towards the door. “You know, zap! Oops!”

Jack bore down upon him, backing him into a corner. “Show me your leg, Rhys.”

“No, no! I’m fine! You don’t need to check on it!” Rhys’s eyes were filled with tears now. He blinked and they began to run down his cheeks. “ _Please_ don’t check on it, Jack.” Sobs broke out from his chest. “Please, _please_ don’t.”

Jack placed a hand behind his head and pulled him in for a kiss. “Whatever it is, we’ll work it out. Even if it’s anything embarrassing.”

“Jack, I don’t-” Jack had been undoing Rhys’s zip and now he pulled down his pants slowly. As he did so, he knelt to the ground. As the material moved down Rhys’s legs, huge, swollen purple bruises appeared one by one.

“What the-” Jack ran a thumb lightly over one. Rhys winced. “How...Rhys...how did these happen?”

“Vallory,” he whispered. Jack went to nod in understanding but then he remembered the Insta-Health and-

“No.” Jack stood and tore open Rhys’s shirt. Beneath it, across his chest and arms, were more bruises. “No, who-who did this to you.” Jack felt faint, like he had in the cafe with Angel. Rhys buckled over, weeping. Jack caught him in his arms, trying hard not to press any bruising. “Babe, you have to tell me. Hey, hey,” Jack moved them so he could look into Rhys’s eyes. “Rhysie? Baby? Tell me who did this to you. Tell me.”

Rhys’s eyes were red and puffy. He could barely form words, his mouth was so thick and dry with crying.

“Tassiter,” he sobbed, burying his face into Jack’s chest. “It was _Tassiter.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I mentioned staying up late. I have a school trip to take kids on tomorrow and we have to sleep over at this place for TWO NIGHTS. TWO NIGHTS OF NO SLEEP. FEEL FOR ME.


	14. It was Tassiter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you thank you thank you for all of your kind and wonderful comments. I am deeply in love with all of you and I hope you are all ready for the next stage of this relationship. 
> 
> It's called..."ending the fanfic". I can assume (seeing as I don't plan each chapter) that there's only around two to three chapters of this fic remaining. There might be more! I hope there is, but I can't guarantee it. I am super sad because I have had a blast writing this. I might make it a series and write more but I'm not sure. I do have an idea for the next installment but we shall have to wait and see...
> 
> I've had some people suggesting they might do fan art of this fic and my gosh, if you did fan art - any of you - I'd be indebted to you for life. Fan art is probably the greatest gift you can give to an author. Tbh I NEED to see visual representations of Dark!Slytherin!Rhys (my life, my soul, my bundle of joy). 
> 
> With regard to the school trip, I had an AWESOME time and yes, I am extremely tired. I fought off a migraine today and am only just about living to tell the tale. 
> 
> Anyway, enough of my rambling. I hope you enjoy this chapter! :D

“Tassiter,” Rhys sobbed, shuddering. He pressed his face against Jack. “It was  _ Tassiter.” _

Jack sunk down to his knees, Rhys going with him.  There was too much to process. His daughter going through something traumatic behind him and Rhys...Rhys was damaged beyond belief.  To what extent, Jack wasn’t even sure. He swelled with rage, taking a deep breath in through his nose in an attempt to quell the murderous thoughts taking hold in his brain.  Rhys shook with sobs and he curled into a tight ball in Jack’s lap. Despite how he felt, Jack couldn’t overreact right now. Not with Rhys in this state. He would just make it worse. Oh, Jack was going to  _ kill _ Tassiter.

_ Fuck all of the games. Fuck trying to “bring Tassiter down to size.” Oh, I’m going to bring Tassiter down alright. He won’t know what’s hit him. He’ll learn not to mess with Jack Lawrence, and goddamn he’ll be learning it the hard way. How dare he mark my- _

It was then that Jack realised something crucial. He remembered all of those mysterious bruises that he’d come across on Rhys’s body.  Had they  _ all  _ been excused by him? Had he really been that stupid? 

He had been such a fool.

“How did this happen?” His voice slipped out in a whisper. If it hadn’t, he would have roared it and thrown himself to his feet, ready to kill the next Hyperion scumbag he saw. Rhys, on the other hand, was finding it hard to breathe. 

“If-if he gets mad, he...he uses me as a- as a- as a p-p- _ punch bag _ .”

Jack closed his eyes, shaking. “And  _ why _ did you not tell me?”

Rhys moved his body, turning his head to look up at Jack. His eyes were bloodshot and glistening. 

“We h-have to b-b-bring him down. I cou-couldn’t let him treat you like that anym-m-more.”

Something inside Jack broke in two. He scooped Rhys up and held him close. 

“Oh Rhysie, why would you ever think that letting him do that, for  _ any  _ reason, was okay? You’re…” Jack peered down, peeling Rhys’s shirt aside to reveal another abundance of bruising. “You’re  _ covered  _ in them.”

“He w-wasn’t particularly imp-impressed by m-m-me going to see my family.” The younger man let his head fall again. “Or...or getting k-kidnapped…” His shoulders rose and fell and Jack could feel tears dripping onto his bare forearm. 

“He needs to pay,” Jack growled. “He has to pay for everything he’s done to you. To  _ us _ . Rhys, we have to kill him.” He pulled the boy to his feet and held his arms gently as to not hurt him any more than he’d been hurt already. “We have to  _ kill  _ him.”

“But J-Jack, that’s imp-p-possible.”

“Nothing is impossible.” Placing a finger under Rhys’s chin, he lifted his head. “You didn’t stand for it when I thought breaking into Tassiter’s office would be impossible.”

“That’s a little d-different to murder.” 

Jack let go of Rhys and began to pace, eyes flicking back to Angel who remained softly breathing in her bed. 

“Once Angel’s better, we need to take action.” Jack paused, brushing Rhys’s hair back lightly. “You don’t need to be a part of this, babe. I can do it myself.”

Rhys swayed before rubbing his eyes and taking a deep breath. “No. You’re right. He h-has to go. And I have to be a p-part of this.”

“It’s gonna be shitstorm after.”   
“We’re probably going to die.”

“Probably.” A silence fell between them as both men fell into thought. “Unless we don’t,” Jack announced eventually, running a finger along Rhys’s chin. “Unless we take measures to ensure that we  _ don’t  _ die.”

Rhys raised an eyebrow. “What are you suggesting?”

As the plan came together in his mind, Jack’s heart raced faster and faster. His palms began to sweat at the thought of what might be. He hadn’t considered...No, that was a lie. He’d quite often considered what it would be like…

“Rhys,” he said, stepping forward and grasping his partner’s hands. “Rhys, if...if we kill Tassiter...one of us could become the next CEO.”

Rhys blinked. It was silent for a while. “...That’s... _ true.  _ But only if-”

“Only if we can keep our heads after we kill him. We have to have leverage. To ensure that we can’t be taken down by some asswhipe who wants to beat us to the position.”

Wiping his eyes, Rhys stepped forward and ran his hands down Jack’s chest. He sniffed and gazed at Jack’s chest.

“We’ll kill him slow,” he muttered, straightening Jack’s collar. “Make him  _ feel  _ it.”

Jack smirked, his neck growing hot. “Go on.”

“I want to see him suffer for every bad thing he’s ever said or done to either of us.” Rhys’s gaze met Jack’s. “For every bruise he’s ever given me. For every time he’s made you feel like shit.” Rhys grabbed Jack’s lapels in his fists and tugged him close. “I’m done being the one who’s walked all over. I’m done being treated like  _ dirt.  _ We’re too good to not be at the top, Jack. We’re  _ meant  _ to run this place.”

Grinning, Jack leant in to kiss him hard. “Ain’t that the truth,” he murmured before pulling Rhys flush against him. “We’re gonna rule the world, you and I.”

*

It took two hours for Angel to come around. By that point, the white tattoo-like symbols on her arms had faded but were still visible, and she was very hot to the touch. Jack explained what had happened, feeling it would be idiotic to lie to her. The Siren powers could come out at any given time without her control during the first few months after transition. Thankfully, Jack had had a deep interest in Siren mythology whilst growing up, so knew far more than Rhys when it came down to it. Rhys simply sat at the end of her bed, watching her small face fall as her father stroked it and told her everything. She cried a great deal, unsure of how to handle such a huge responsibility. It wasn’t surprising - she was barely seven-years old.  Whilst she may have appeared mature for her age, Angel was not in any position to deal with this in a grown-up manner.  She also screamed at them to leave at one point, causing some glassware on her shelf to shatter - seemingly independently.

Closing the door behind them, Jack slid down the wall beside the room and buried his head in his hands. Rhys dropped down beside him and laid his head on his shoulder.  It was now his turn to do the comforting.

“You did the right thing.”

Jack sighed, lifting his head. He placed it back on the wall and stared at the ceiling. “I know. I just feel so sorry for her. I can’t believe she’s a Siren. Her mom...her mom wasn’t…”

“Whilst I don’t know as much about Siren’s as you,” Rhys said, offering him a small smile, “I do know that the gene isn’t passed on through familial lines. Sirens...they just... _ appear _ . She’s a very special girl, Jack. More special than we ever thought she was before. She needs protection and we sure as hell can’t give her that where we’re at in this company.”

“All the more reason to end Tassiter for good,” the programmer growled. 

Rhys didn’t reply. He merely pulled Jack to his feet and led him into the kitchen where he started to make coffee. Jack was slumped on the breakfast bar, playing with a grape that had escaped the fruit bowl.  Rhys was being unusually quiet.

Jack ran a hand through his hair, sighing. “Hey, pumpkin. It’ll be alright. We’ll get all of this shit sorted.”

Rhys stilled. Jack watched as his body went rigid. “Rhys?”

“Jack…” Rhys began tapping the spoon on his palm as he turned around. His eyes were glassy once again and his face was pale. “There’s something I haven’t told you.”  Jack went to stand but Rhys put up his hand. “It’s probably better if you’re sitting for this.”

Resuming his position, Jack eyed Rhys cautiously as the boy began walking back and forth behind the bar. He wrung his wrists and looked at the ceiling, quite obviously searching for the words he needed to say. 

“With Tassiter...he uh...recently…” Rhys swallowed hard. “The violence...he’s become more...he’s...well it’s like he’s getting off on hurting me.  I mean he always  _ has  _ gotten off on it, that’s not what I’m trying to say here.  Um, I mean,  _ recently  _ he’s been more... _ forthcoming.  _ He keeps  _ touching _ me and saying all these...these  _ things  _ he wants to...uh... _ do  _ to me. It’s getting worse every day. It’s...it’s disgusting.  He’s gross and I hate him and I’m  _ so  _ sorry that I haven’t told you all this. I was just...scared. Of what might happen next if I did.”

Frozen in shock, Jack stared at the wall behind Rhys. Rhys made no attempt to move, wondering what Jack was going to do in response to such an onslaught of sensitive information.  It took a few moments, but eventually Jack’s eyes grew even wider and he met Rhys’s stare.

“Have you told me everything this time?” he asked through clenched teeth as he stood from the bar stool. Rhys hurriedly nodded his head and backed up against the kitchen cupboards, Jack rounding the breakfast bar to come down upon him. “Did he rape you?”

Their faces were inches apart. Rhys shook his head as he blinked and tears rolled down his cheeks.

“No. Not yet,” he whispered. Jack wrapped his arms around him tightly and kissed his cheek.  Neither spoke another word, as enough had already been said. 

*

Jack reluctantly allowed Rhys to go back to work the following day.  On the evening where Jack’s life had turned upside-down, the two men had sat down and concocted the plan that might bring Harold Tassiter down for good.  For the plan to work, everything would have to continue as normal, even for Rhys as the CEO’s PA.  They had both agreed that the plan would have to been seen through quickly so that Rhys didn’t have to go through any more of Tassiter’s beatings or anything more horrifying.  Also, they weren’t going to be able to kill Tassiter alone.  They needed to enlist the help of a few friends if their plan was going to work. With Rhys’s ability to almost do as he pleased as PA to the CEO, he was able to send a few extra shuttles down to Pandora alongside the usual that travelled down on a weekly basis.  What didn’t usually happen, however, was a few extra people joining the crew on the way back.  They fit in, wearing Hyperion clothing gained from a New-U machine and possibly a few disposable bodies. 

*

Fiona folded her arms and frowned. “How long is it that we have to stay in this shitty apartment?” 

“My apartment is not shitty,” Jack muttered, flinching. He turned to face her with a glare. She simply smirked and looked back at Nisha, who was sitting on the rug talking to Angel. 

“I’ve heard rumours that there’s another Siren on Pandora,” the Sheriff said as she fumbled with a Rubik’s Cube. “Her name is Lilith. She’s very powerful and beautiful. I can see now that that’s common across Sirens.”

Angel blushed and giggled, flipping her hair back over her shoulder. “Do you think Lilith knows that I exist?”

“Maybe,” Nisha replied, completing the Cube with a small grin. “Who knows with you Sirens. What I do know is that your Dad’s right.  You can’t leave this apartment until he can find somewhere safer for you.  Which is why we’re here. To help you.” 

“But I’ve been fine,” Angel said with a pout. “My powers haven’t even come out since the first time!”

Jack had crossed the room by now and he knelt down beside her. “I know this sucks.  But we can’t risk you showing your powers outside of this room, baby girl.  Someone might try to take you away from me. Do you want that?”

Hunching her shoulders, defeated, Angel shook her head. “ _ No _ .”

“Well then. Let Daddy and Rhys sort this out with our friends. We’ll have you safe and sound in no time.  Maybe I’ll even try to find this other Siren so that she can teach you how to control your powers.” 

Her eyes lit up. “Really?!”

Jack smiled. “Really.”

Rhys, who had been out gathering Vaughn, reappeared in the apartment.  Vaughn trailed behind him, eyes darting to the various figures around the room.  He quite obviously made an effort to stay clear of Wilhelm, who was taking up a large portion of the room by the kitchen.  Apparently, Rhys had been cluing Vaughn in on everything since he'd met Jack.  When Jack had found out, he'd been impressed that Vaughn hadn't overreacted and warned them to stop.  He'd known about the two of them breaking into Tassiter's office, about why Rhys went for the position as PA and about their new plan to kill the CEO.  He'd even wanted in on it.  

"Wow, real Pandoran natives," Vaughn uttered, shifting his glasses as he spied Fiona and Sasha.  They waved uncertainly as Rhys nudged him with his elbow. 

"Bro,  _I'm_ a native Pandoran." 

Meanwhile, Jack was pulling out blueprints of Helios and laying them out on the table.  Nisha had joined him by his side and Wilhelm did the same soon after.  Fiona and Sasha shook hands with Vaughn swiftly before the entire group was gazing down at the table.

"Angel, would you give the adults a minute?" Jack said, leaning around Nisha to see his daughter. She pulled a face, obviously upset about being asked to leave, but sighed and nodded before traipsing to her room. When the sound of the door closing echoed through the apartment, Jack turned back to his group of allies.  Despite everything, Fiona and Sasha seemed to have forgiven him for what he had said before on Pandora.  Either that or they were waiting for  _their_ moment to kill  _him._ With a wavering breath, Jack placed a hand on the blueprints and gazed up at those surrounding him.

"So. Here's the plan."

 


	15. Bruises

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry in advance :S

Blinking hard and fast, Rhys roused from an uncomfortable sleep.  His throat was incredibly dry and his eyes were sore; he felt exceptionally crappy, to say the least. Searching his mind for why he might feel this way, he began to pay more attention to his surroundings. For some reason, everything in his bedroom was now clinical and white and -

Of course. 

_ Vallory _ . 

Rhys wasn’t in his bedroom at all. 

He vaguely recalled the trip back to Helios so that he could heal there from her torture. Upon further inspection, he noted that he was in the Medical wing and was attached to a drip. There was no sign of-

_ Oh right. _

Jack hadn’t come with him on the shuttle. Rhys didn’t remember him being there. Perhaps Tassiter had made him stay to complete the job at the mines.  Rhys suddenly became aware of murmuring voices in the hallway.  He couldn’t make out who they belonged to, but they were calm and slow.  He closed his eyes. He needed everything to be calm and slow at the moment. There was a sound of a door handle turning. Rhys cracked open an eyelid.

He stopped breathing. 

“Ah! You’re  _ awake _ . Good.” Harold Tassiter stood in the entrance to his room, his arms folded across his chest and a smirk adorning his long, pale face. Rhys said nothing; his wide eyes simply followed Tassiter around the room. His breath was struggling to escape his lungs because he daren’t breathe at all.  All he wanted was to be in Jack’s arms or somewhere, at least, that wasn’t here. The CEO walked slowly to the window, crossing his arms behind his back as he went. He gazed out into the deep emptiness of space, tutting and sighing in equal measure. The silence of it all had Rhys going cold, sweat beginning to form at his hairline. He went to move - wanting to run, wanting to be free - but when movement was impossible, he realised with horror that he was strapped down fast to the hospital bed. He fought silently against the restraints, hoping that Tassiter would remain occupied by the stars outside, and tears began streaking down his face when it dawned on him that there was no escape. 

It was just Rhys and Tassiter. 

Alone again. 

“Hmm. I am concerned, Rhys. I gave you a job to do and you…” Tassiter took a deep inhale through his nostrils. “...You _disobeyed_ my orders.”

“My family-” Rhys began, but stopped when his voice barely came out in even a squeak. He tried again, wanting to beg Tassiter for forgiveness, but it was in vain. The drowning had taken its toll on his throat. Tassiter turned to look down at him, his smirk wavering. Step by step, he approached Rhys’s bedside. Rhys, going faint from his irregular breathing, shifted as far as he could away from the vile man. He didn’t want to be hurt. He didn’t want to be touched. 

Not again. 

Tassiter descended upon him, resting his hands on the metal bed frame. They curled tightly around it; Rhys noted the whiteness of his knuckles. He was apoplectic with rage - Rhys could just tell, he’d knew exactly what Tassiter was like when he was angry. 

“Your  _ family _ was not the mission, Rhys. I am…” Tassiter laid a hand on Rhys’s chest, “honestly shocked at you.” 

Instinctively, Rhys’s body bowed away from the touch. It made him feel violently sick and he desperately wanted out. Tears continued rolling from his eyes; he was helpless and there was nothing he could do to save himself. 

“Please don’t,” he whimpered, but the words failed him once again. “Please-”

Ignoring his pleas, Tassiter slammed his fist down hard into Rhys’s stomach. It took all the wind out of Rhys. The cry of agony that ripped its way out of him was excruciating as it passed through his throat, but Rhys was too desperate to get away to think about that. Another punch clocked him square in the eye, and this time Rhys couldn’t disregard the pain. It felt as though his eye had exploded, but no blood came away on Tassiter’s knuckles. For a few moments, he couldn’t see out of it. Was he blind? He shrieked, praying that someone - anyone - would hear his feeble attempts at crying out for help. 

“You think that you can use the superiority I give you for some damned road trip?” Tassiter growled, fist smacking Rhys in the jaw. He could only lie there, taking the beatings as they came. 

But he was used to it by now.

Yet this time was definitely the worst time. He couldn’t move to defend himself. Not that he was usually allowed to, but just being completely restrained made this thousands of times worse.  He tried to grasp for the nurse's button by the side of his bed but Tassiter smacked his hand away and laughed, high and cruel. 

“They all know what I’m doing to you in here, boy,” he sneered, pressing fingers into Rhys’s throat. “They can’t do a thing because they know I’ll throw them out of an airlock.”

A hand had found its way up Rhys’s thigh and was resting just below his balls. Tassiter grinned as he ran a slow finger over his bulge. The sensitivity, mixed with the sickness in his stomach, had Rhys jerking himself away as much as possible, bile rising in his throat. Tassiter only reacted more, cupping Rhys’s balls and squeezing the hand around his neck even tighter. 

“You’re a bad boy, Rhys,” he croaked, leaning in close. The stench of his breath wafted out and Rhys crinkled his nose in disgust. This hurt, however, because his eye and mouth were growing puffier by the second. Tassiter’s nails were digging in so hard that he felt them pierce his skin and he yelped loudly. Grinning, Tassiter licked up the length of Rhys's face, almost causing the contents of the younger man's stomach to emerge.  “Bad boys deserve punishment.”

“S-top.” The lack of air getting to his lungs was problematic, to say the least. Tassiter hadn’t held on for this long before. “St-o-p, p-lea-se!”

When Tassiter let go, the relief washed through Rhys like a wave and he gulped down air despite his aching throat. The CEO stalked over to a case he’d set down by the door on the way in and lifted it, carrying it back over to the bed. As he placed it down, Rhys shook. He shook so vigorously that Tassiter grabbed his leg and glared at him.

“Stop that, Rhys.”

Rhys did his best to do as he was told. He didn’t want to be struck again. Tassiter let go, eyeing him cautiously, before tending to the box and flicking it open at the latches. He pulled out a giant medical needle filled with red fluid. Rhys opened his mouth to scream in protest but was stopped short by a wad of material being stuffed into his mouth. He fought, once again, against the restraints but to no avail, of course. 

“Now then, Rhys. Take a deep breath. This won’t hurt... much _. _ ”

The thick needle was plunged into his heart and Rhys did scream. He cried and cried and eventually…

…eventually he fell asleep. 

*

The next time that Rhys awoke, he felt comfortable and  _ well.  _ No more aching throat, no more sore eyes and  _ no  _ more pain in his body. He flexed his muscles, ready to feel the pressure of the restraints, but was shocked to find there were none. He pushed himself into a sitting position, gazing around as though what had happened had all just been a horrific nightmare. He scrunched up his eyes; he was extremely confused.  A glass of water was sat on the night stand - he reached out and grabbed it, gulping down its contents. He then stared about the room, wondering what he should do. He felt absolutely fine, which was unsettling. The last thing he remembered was being in agony. He picked up the ECHO device that was also on the night stand and settled back down against the pillows, searching through it for...yes. 

Yes, there he was. 

He pressed Jack’s number and snuggled down, gulping and rubbing at his neck. He had to tell Jack. He couldn’t keep what Tassiter was doing to him a secret any longer. But...but Jack might not understand.  With Vasquez...before...no one had believed him when he’d told them he’d been hurting him. No one. It was because Hugo had hit him everywhere that didn’t show. Rhys worried then. Should he call Jack at all? Also, Tassiter might reappear and ask why he’s even placing a call in the first place...Tassiter didn’t like it when Rhys made calls he himself hadn’t verified. He went to disconnect the call but it was too late. Jack had picked up. He stayed silent, unsure of what to say.

“Rhys?” Jack gasped. “Is that you?” Relief was strung into his every word. 

“...Hey,” Rhys replied, biting down on his lip almost hard enough to draw blood. “I can’t...talk for long. Tassiter keeps uh... checking up on me every once in a while.” Why couldn’t he just tell Jack the truth?

“Oh kitten, it’s so good to hear your voice. Are you okay?”

_ No. I’m not. I miss you so much, please come back and save me.  _ _ I'm so scared. I need you. _

“Well no. Not really. Being near-drowned isn’t my idea of fun.” Escapism through humour it was then. Jack laughed before coughing lightly. 

“I thought you were going to die, Rhysie.”  _ Me too.  _ “I’ve never been so scared in my life.”

Rhys felt the emotions bubbling up inside him - he needed Jack _so_ badly. He was terrified of what Tassiter was capable of. 

“I’m so sorry, Jack,” he blubbed. 

“Oh baby, you have nothing to apologise for. I’m just sorry that Tassiter made me stay down here and not come back with you.” Rhys wished, oh how he wished, that Jack could’ve come back up to Helios with him. Granted he wouldn’t have been able to stay with Rhys because of their cover, but just the knowledge that Jack was closer could’ve helped. Maybe. He took a shaky breath.

“I’m glad you didn’t let our cover slip. You could’ve - I know how angry you can get. I love you. Hurry back though, okay?”

“I love you too kitten-” Jack’s voice became background noise as Rhys’s ears picked up on Tassiter’s drifting down the hall. He gulped, fumbling with the device.

“Shit, Tassiter’s here. I’ve got to go.” 

He cut off.

The moment Rhys had placed the ECHO back on the bedside table, he shoved himself down under the sheets and closed his eyes. He had to pretend that he’d been asleep this entire time.

“Ah, I see you enjoyed the water I left you,” the disgusting man said. Rhys sighed, knowing that he couldn’t fake it now. He sat up, breathing deeply and watching the man grow closer to his bed. “You look wonderful, Rhys. You’re a lucky boy.”

“Am I?” Rhys hissed back, his fists clenching under the sheets. “You sure about that?”

That was it. Tassiter had his hand around his neck once again and squeezed. “Watch your tone.”

“Sorry! Sorry, I’m so sorry!” 

Tassiter let go. 

“You’re probably wondering how you’re feeling so spritely, hmm? Well, that’s all thanks to  _ me _ .” The CEO grinned, his yellowing teeth an eyesore, and he clamped his hand down on Rhys’s thigh once again. “Because I care about you, Rhys, I gave you an Insta-Health. They’re  _ very  _ expensive and only  _ I  _ can issue them. You should be grateful.”

The clamped hand squeezed. Rhys wanted to be sick. “Yes, sir. I’m extremely grateful.”

“Now you’re probably wondering how you can repay me,” Tassiter replied, letting go of his leg. He leant in and ran a finger down Rhys’s cheek. “I know I can think of a way.”

Rhys’s lip quivered. He wanted Jack. He needed  _ Jack.  _

He began to cry, knowing that doing so was a bad move. Tassiter growled under his breath and smashed his fist down on Rhys’s leg. It was excruciating - especially since Rhys’s had hyper-tender thighs anyway. He was prone to bruising there from simply knocking his leg on a table. The pain shot through him and Tassiter brought his fist down on Rhys’s other leg.

“I’d think carefully about who you’re dealing with, Rhys”. Tassiter clipped him across the ear. “I’m not a man who doesn’t get  _ exactly  _ what he wants.”

With that, he brushed himself down, turned on his heel and walked out of the room, slamming the door behind him. Rhys sat in pain and in shock, staring after the man. Eventually everything came crashing down at once. He could barely move his legs to curl up but he did his best, weeping for help. Weeping for Jack _.  _


	16. Breathe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I THINK there will only be one chapter left to this fic but I can't make any absolute statements because I SUCK AT PLANNING
> 
> So yeah. Here's the one we've ALL BEEN WAITING FOR (I TELL YOU THIS IS LIKE WHAT I'VE BEEN WAITING TO WRITE) 
> 
> It took me about four hours to write two thousand words that I PRAYED you guys would be happy with. ENJOY xxxxxxx
> 
> (Special thanks to my baes, Erin (erinchu), Fran (therhackoning) and Coré (shippingismypersonalhell). Follow them on Tumblr)

“Sir, here are the reports that you asked for.” Rhys stepped up to the desk tentatively, hands shaking slightly as he placed the stack of papers down. He kept his head down, not allowing himself any chance of catching the CEO’s gaze. Tassiter’s own hand, gnarled with age, shot out and grabbed a hold of Rhys’s wrist, holding him steadfast as he licked his lips and looked the PA over. Rhys sucked in a breath. It took all of his willpower to not wince or squirm. He didn't want to give Tassiter any reason to get mad. The plan couldn't afford that.

“Why  _ thank you,  _ Rhys ! What a  _ help  _ you are." He squeezed, the grip painful now. "Could you be an angel and send a message down to R&D to schedule in an appointment for me? There’s a good boy.” 

Nodding vigorously, only wanting to get away, Rhys coughed and smiled. “Of course.” He went to step back but Tassiter’s hand remained clamped to him like a vice.

“Is everything alright, Rhys? You seem...” There was a hint of a smirk playing on his taut mouth. “... _ nervous. _ ”

“Oh no, I’m perfect, sir.” Rhys swallowed hard, regretfully knowing that his Adam’s apple would bob and show that no, he wasn’t perfect at all. That he was quite the opposite, actually. What was wrong with him? Vallory had been right. He never had been good at the con. 

“Oh dear,” tutted Tassiter, standing. He kept his hand around Rhys as he circled the desk. They were face to face when Tassiter finally spoke again. “I don’t like liars. Tell me, darling. What’s wrong?” A long, spindly finger traced its way down his cheek. Rhys closed his eyes, wishing that he could be anywhere but here. Yet he reminded himself of what was to come. Of how Tassiter would soon be gone from his life forever. He pushed that thought to the forefront of his mind and took a deep breath. Something about the reality of it all fueled something deep inside of him and he opened his eyes, wearing his own smirk now. 

“Honestly, sir. I’m fine. I’ll get that meeting scheduled right away.” 

Raising an eyebrow, Tassiter stared at him hard. With a huff, he let go. Rhys turned to walk back to his own pathetic excuse for a desk. He chuckled silently as he went, toying absentmindedly with the wire threaded into his blazer. 

*

Jack curled his hand around the ECHO, resulting in an audible crack arising from somewhere within its circuitry. One more wrong move on Tassiter’s part and Jack was going to have abandoned the organised plan altogether. He hadn’t realised just how often Tassiter was mistreating Rhys and he took slow breaths, knowing that Rhys wouldn’t have to go through it much longer.  

“Shit,” Nisha breathed, her voice coming through the ECHO with a crackle. “If that dude’s voice had gotten any louder on that mic…”   
“I know,” growled Jack, hating that his job was to sit around and wait for the signal. He picked at the skin growing at his finger’s nail bed before giving up and sticking it in his mouth to chew it off. Goddammit, he  _really_ hated waiting. Jack was not a patient man.

*

Rhys began humming to himself as he ended the call with R&D. He had spoken to a particularly pleasant assistant named ‘Jacqueline’ and her sugar-sweet voice had only added to his now-whimsical attitude. Tassiter was going to die and Rhys was going to enjoy every  _ minute  _ of it. He couldn't wait to see the life leave those heinous eyes. Chortling to himself, he stood to clear the mess of paperwork that had accumulated on his desk over the last few days.  _ This is it _ , he thought, bending to place the stapler in his bottom drawer. Any moment now, he would give the signal, and Jack would begin his journey through Helios to kill the godforsaken man who had traumatised him for months. Any moment now and the company would be theirs for the taking. He grinned in spite of himself and through his utter inability to be discrete, he did not hear Tassiter approaching him from behind. A hand ghosted across his back, making him jump and spin. Tassiter caged him in against the desk and pressed flush up against him. 

“S-s-sir?” he gasped, hands flying to the CEO’s shoulders to push him away. Seemingly taking this as an invitation more than anything else, Tassiter surged forward and crashed his lips onto Rhys’s own. The force of it had their teeth scraping together painfully and Rhys could only freeze in disgust, stunned by what was happening.

“Someone’s a happy little bunny, aren’t they?” Tassiter’s tongue swept across Rhys’s bottom lip and he balked, hands shoving hard into the man’s chest. The force of it had Tassiter stumbling backwards, eyes narrow and mouth twisted into a cruel smile. 

“What are you doing?!” the PA shrieked. “Don’t _touch_ me, asshole!”

“Oh but Rhys, I thought you had a thing for getting with your boss?” Tassiter retorted snidely, brushing his  mouth with the back of his hand. He pointed a finger in Rhys's face. “You think I don’t know about your relationship with that  _ programmer?” _

Rhys backed up against his desk, whining in his throat. This was not how any of this was supposed to have gone. The plan...and how did he-

“I’d had my ideas about the two of you for a while before I decided to send you down to Pandora together to the Eridium mines. The cameras on the shuttle _proved_ my suspicions about you both.”

Cold sweat trickled down Rhys’s neck. A fierce heat spread across his cheeks. He had _seen_ -

“For months I’ve been trying to work out who broke into my office on the night of the ball. For  _months_ I’ve tried to match the body types of the culprits to workers around Helios. For a long time neither you or Lawrence sprung to mind but then I looked at the footage again one day after seeing you both beside one another and it  _ hit  _ me. It could be you two! You looked just the same as the two in the footage. But did I have proof?” Tassiter slammed his palm against Rhys’s neck and thrust him back against the wall. In a blur, something shiny and metallic was yanked from Tassiter’s pocket and Rhys suddenly found himself handcuffed to the railings that lined the walls. “ _ No _ .  __ I did  _ not. _ ”

“You sick fuck! Let me go!” Rhys cried, pulling against the restraint. He tugged, but it was no use; he wasn’t getting out of this one. Pain seared across his cheek as Tassiter’s hand came sweeping across it.

“I had to know. The two of you seemed to  _ hate  _ each other in front of me but I saw you having coffee together. I saw you walking side by side and  _ flirting  _ in the damned Hall. But I had to have  _ proof _ . So I sent you on that errand to Pandora along with a few little tricks wired into every corner of the shuttle that took you there. And boy, did you provide the proof. Whatever  _ front  _ you were pulling to keep me from knowing that it was you who broke into my office? That’s all fucked. You stupid little prick. How  _ dare  _ you.” He whipped out a photograph from his pocket. A CCTV image of a masked Rhys and Jack, standing outside the doors to Tassiter’s office all those months ago. Tassiter sneered, producing a gun from his jacket. He ran the edge of it along Rhys’s jawline. The PA shuddered and pulled away from the cold metal barrel, tears spilling down his face. 

“No! Please...don’t...I didn’t! I-I-”

“You’re  _ dead _ , boy.”

“Ha! That’s funny,” laughed Jack, appearing out of nowhere. He looked almost inhuman, the way his face was contorted with rage. Jack grabbed Tassiter by the back of the collar, and an awestruck Rhys watched him drag the shocked-to-silence CEO over to his desk. “Because, ha, here  _ I  _ was thinking that that was gonna be  _ you. _ ”

*

The ECHO device lay abandoned on the floor of Jack’s apartment, crackling loudly and spitting out sparks. 

Jack had heard enough. 

*

Pushing the vent panel open silently, Jack placed it on the floor whilst watching Tassiter and Rhys through narrowed eyes. Fire churned in his gut and he was seeing red; it was taking all his might to not explode then and there. No, he couldn’t draw attention to himself. He couldn’t risk ruining this opportunity. Rhys may have wanted to be the one to end Tassiter, may have wanted to be the one holding the gun that ended  him, but right now the kid was in no position to be killing anyone. If Jack was spotted before he reached the dick, he'd be shot himself. Swiftly, he darted across the office, praying that Rhys didn’t look at him and give his position away. Hiding behind Tassiter’s desk, he checked his gun and peered around the corner to see Tassiter pull out a gun of his own. Fear swallowed Jack whole. He went cold all over. No. This prick was not about to kill his Rhys.

“You’re  _ dead,  _ boy,” the old fool snapped and Jack couldn’t stifle a snort as he came down upon him. He caught the back of Tassiter’s collar in his fist and yanked the CEO backwards, enjoying the startled choking sound that erupted from the guy’s throat. 

“Ha! That’s funny! Because, ha, here  _ I  _ was thinking that that was gonna be  _ you. _ ” 

Dragging him over to the desk, Jack used all of his strength to pull the CEO up onto it, grinning to himself when he saw how completely  _ terrified  _ the little shitstain was. It actually warmed Jack to see such an expression of terror on his face. The suddenness of it all seemed to have frozen Tassiter briefly, so Jack took the opportunity to get both hands tight around his neck and to  _ squeeze _ . He pushed and pushed the thin, breakable neck towards the hard surface of the desk, but Tassiter regained some level of awareness and began to fight back. He reached up and tried to push Jack away, but it was in vain. He was already too weak.  Letting go with one hand and raising his fist, Jack smashed it down onto the fucker's face. Blood spurted out of Tassiter’s now-broken nose - so much so that it splattered onto Jack’s own face. He couldn’t care less. He reveled in the moment. Tassiter was going to die by  _ his  _ hand and boy was Jack  _ loving  _ it. It was as though he’d never felt more alive than in this very moment. There was such a purpose to this task; to Tassiter’s life being ended. 

As the CEO struggled, something small dropped out of his pocket and clattered onto the table. Jack managed to tear his attention away from Tassiter’s writhing face for enough time to notice that it was a small key. Grinning, he grabbed it and tossed it over to Rhys, who was taking in the procedure with round, shining eyes. 

Jack turned back to Tassiter, who was clearly trying to say something. Could Jack be bothered to hear what the man had to say? He threw his head back and laughed.  _ No.  _

It was then that Rhys appeared at his side, laying his firm hand on his shoulder. The kid's mouth brushed against his ear, his hot breath making Jack lose focus for a moment.

“Do it,” Rhys urged, his voice filled with malice and meaning. "Do it, Jack."

“He’s all yours if you want him, kiddo,” Jack managed, seeing as most of his willpower and effort was being exerted on the flailing body beneath him.

Rhys chuckled under his breath, waving a gun in his hand and walking slowly around the table. He dragged the tip of the gun along the edge of the desk, the sound causing Tassiter to try another scream and convulse even more. When he was opposite Jack, Rhys  ran the gun along Tassiter’s jaw and smiled, all teeth. He leant in close, right up to the bloodshot eye of the CEO.

“You’re dead,  _ boy _ ,” he snarled, and pulled the trigger. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HUEHUEHUEHUE


	17. Bury Them With A Smile

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yooooooooooooooooooooo the AMOUNT of KUDOS AND COMMENTS AND LOVE FOR THIS FIC IS SO AMAZING I WEEP ALL THE TIME BECAUSE OF YOU ALL (in a good way) 
> 
> THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU
> 
> Also okay so thank you to the usual loves, erinchu, therhackoning and shippingismypersonalhell for their support and ideas xxxxxxxxx
> 
> ENJOY HUEHUEHUE

The deafening sound of the close-range gunshot caused everything to buzz and to blur. In the suddenness of it all, Rhys stumbled away from the body of Tassiter, almost falling backwards down the steps in the process. As he became more aware of the scene playing out before him, he noticed the amount of blood pouring off of the desk and off of Jack, who was standing with his jaw hanging open and his eyes wide and unblinking whilst also staring down at the former CEO.

“Jack,” Rhys managed, voice tight. “Jack, oh my _god_.” His panicked gaze darted between Tassiter and Jack. He’d just... _ killed _ Harold Tassiter, the CEO of  _ Hyperion _ . The gun slipped from his grasp, clattering onto the floor and breaking the heavy silence. Rhys cautiously took a step forward, worrying that Tassiter might just sit up and go apeshit at them. As he peered closer, the hole in the dude’s head and the brains dripping out onto the desk were a clear confirmation that actually, that wouldn’t be happening ever again.

“Holy shit, you  _ did  _ it.” Jack continued to stare at the body, his hand coming up to run through his hair. He was drenched from head to toe with glistening scarlet but he didn’t seem to be caring about that. Rhys looked down at himself and realised that he too was covered in blood. As he slowly came to terms with what he had done, he began to regain the feeling in his fingers.  His thoughts were becoming more coherent and  _ shit _ , Tassiter was  _ gone _ . There was no longer a CEO of Hyperion. What replaced the numbness was something he hadn’t honestly expected to feel. A warmth spread through his body, starting from the base of his spine. He hunched slightly, wrapping his arms around himself and taking quicker, deeper breaths.  He couldn’t help it when he let out a huff of laughter.

“Fuck you,” he spat with malice, glaring down at Tassiter’s lifeless form. “ _ Asshole _ .”

Jack was seemingly still lost in his own thoughts. He folded his arms and frowned before leaning forward, extending a finger and prodding at Tassiter’s arm.

“He’s really gone...”

Rhys licked his lips, smirking. His arms remained tightly wrapped around his waist. “Yep. Good riddance.”

“You really did it. Like...poof!” Jack waved his hands in the air, finally tearing his eyes from Tassiter to look at Rhys. “Gone forever. No more...no more  _ shit  _ from him. He can’t  _ hurt  _ anyone any more.” Jack moved around the desk and stepped in front of Rhys, who had never seen him look more sincere. Swallowing loudly, Jack ran the backs of his fingers down Rhys’s face. He seemed to be shaking. “He can’t hurt  _ you _ , Rhysie.”

Leaning in, Rhys pressed his lips to Jack’s and smiled. “ _ We _ really did it.” He finally unwound his arms from around himself and slid them around Jack’s neck, allowing himself to sink into the solid form of his boyfriend. His smile turned into a beaming grin. Jack chuckled, eyes sliding back to look at Tassiter.

“You know, I’ve watched a few people die now. I’ve seen their life slip away and this...this has got to be the most rewarding kill of them all.” He turned away from Rhys and gripped the edges of the desk, blood pooling around his hands. “Watching him die…” Jack tilted his head back to catch Rhys’s eye. He lifted up his bloodied hands. “I’ve never felt more alive.” 

There was something in the tone of his voice. It was deep and sultry despite the wicked words leaving his lips. There was something in the way Jack looked at him, pupils large and eyes dark. There was something in the wet blood dripping from his palms that had Rhys forgetting everything and grabbing Jack by the collar, tugging him in and crashing their lips together. Jack didn’t seem to know what to do with his hands for a moment but eventually sighed into the kiss and placed them on either side of Rhys’s already-bloodied face, the blood still warm as it trickled down his cheeks. This only seemed to spur Rhys on even more, and pulling Jack around the desk, he shoved him into the ex-CEO’s chair before standing back to admire him. 

“Well, it certainly suits you,” he mused before climbing into Jack’s lap and straddling him. Jack smirked, hands gripping Rhys’s thighs just the right side of too hard. 

“It suits  _ us _ ,” he growled, hoisting Rhys up a little higher and not caring about the blood that he tasted as he continued to devour Rhys’s mouth. Rhys gasped, a metallic taste seeping into his own mouth at the same time as Jack bucked his hips. The bulge of what Rhys could only assume was Jack’s cock made him whine in the back of his throat and grind down with his own throbbing erection. There was a  _ dead  _ guy behind him but he couldn’t care less. Right now, he was so turned on by everything that had happened that all he wanted was Jack inside him, telling him what a good job he’d done. Jack seemed to read his mind as he gripped Rhys’s hair, tugging his head back so he could bite at his throat.

“I’m so proud of you, kitten.” His tongue trailed up to Rhys’s ear. “You drive me fucking crazy.”

Moaning as Jack nipped his earlobe, Rhys shuffled back to work on unzipping Jack’s pants. Jack mouth only followed him, leaning forward to bite down on his shoulder. Rhys yelped before grinning and standing for only a brief moment to rid himself of his own clothing. His shirt remained but it was unbuttoned now due to Jack, who had worked on it as Rhys had shed his pants. Rhys clambered back onto Jack, pushing his sleeves up to his elbows as he went. 

“Fuck, Rhys, you know we shouldn’t be-”

Rhys cut him off with his mouth, catching Jack’s lower lip between his teeth and smiling. 

“We shouldn’t have killed the CEO but yet, here we are,” he quipped, sliding his hand into Jack’s jacket. He blindly searched for the pocket and buried his fingers inside just as Jack decided to do the same. Rhys drew in a sharp breath when he felt Jack’s finger inside of him, seeking out that sweet spot that drove Rhys wild. Hoping to find what he was looking for before Jack did, he rooted around in the pocket trying to find- ah!

“ _ Ahhhhh _ !” he cried out just as Jack also found his prize. The older man cackled softly as Rhys pulled the packet of lube from Jack’s pocket, placing it between his teeth and ripping it open. He passed it to Jack who kissed him deeply as he squirted it onto his dick. 

“I’m all yours, babe,” Jack said, but Rhys was already a step ahead. He wasted no time in seeking out the tip of Jack’s cock before sliding down onto it and hissing at the dull pain that accompanied the action. Jack stopped breathing for a moment and caught sight of the dead body on the desk. 

“This is really dirty,” he huffed as Rhys began to ride him in earnest. His hands latched onto Rhys’s hips and he looked up into Rhys’s eyes. “Like,  _ ngh _ ,  _ fuck _ , hands down the  _ dirtiest  _ thing I’ve ever done.”

Rhys stretched his body out and grabbed a fistful of Jack’s hair with his cybernetics. The other hand was anchored on the desk behind him, slipping every so often from the blood. A smile passed his lips.

“Shall I get the champagne?” he hissed, voice breathy and face  _ blissful _ . Jack merely snorted and rolled his hips, drawing out a near-pornographic moan from the younger man above him. Eyes rolling into the back of his own head, Jack swore under his breath and clenched his hands, digging his nails into the soft skin of Rhys’s hips. 

“So  _ cupcake _ ,” he grunted, rolling his hips up again. This time Rhys pushed himself off of the desk and curled over, pressing kisses to the top of Jack’s head. “We gotta make this thing - _ oh shit, yeah kiddo just like that, fuck- _ official.” 

Rhys sat up, beginning to shudder. He flashed Jack a grin before twisting his body and snatching the tannoy microphone off of the desk, one of the only things that had remained in its place. He leant even further back to press something under the desk. Turning back, he held the mic in his hand whilst gripping the back of the chair and riding Jack the hardest he’d ever ridden him before. He almost slipped out on more than one occasion with just how much he was giving it. Jack could barely keep up with what was happening and his dick certainly couldn’t, which had him chasing Rhys’s ass, desperately wanting more but at the same time getting more than enough. He squeezed his eyes shut and cried out as he came, gasping for air and almost blubbing with how fucking  _ good  _ he felt. Rhys followed soon after, holding himself up using the back of the chair as he kissed the top of Jack’s head one last time. He pressed the button on the tannoy and went to speak but only a croak escaped his throat. White noise crackled around the room and no doubt the entirety of Helios. He let go of the button and chuckled weakly. 

“Hey handsome,” he muttered, kissing Jack’s mouth.

“Hey yourself,” Jack replied, kissing him back. 

“Mr. Tassiter? Mr. Tassiter, are you there?” came a loud, concerned voice from outside the office door. Numerous fists began banging on the door then. Jack stiffened as Rhys smirked. 

“I locked it,” he whispered, burying his face into Jack’s neck. Jack laughed,  _ of course he had _ . He took the mic and held it to his lips with a grin.

“Mr. Tassiter’s been replaced, sweetcheeks. Starting today, you’re working for  _ us _ .”

There was silence for a while. Rhys slid off of Jack and pulled on his pants. Jack did the same as gunfire began outside of the office doors. 

“John! Is that you? Open up! ”

“Shit!” came another muffled shout from behind the door. Rhys sighed and smiled, taking the mic and bringing it to his lips.

“This is Rhys. You take one more step and we will kill  _ everyone  _ you’ve ever loved. And yes, I’m talking to all of you.” Rhys smoothed back his hair and placed his hand on his hip. He turned to gaze out over Elpis as Jack wrapped his arm around his waist and placed a kiss on his cheek. “I’m talking to everyone on Helios. We have men on the inside who have captured the families of every single guard on active duty. Why don’t you have a think about that before you try and take us on. One false move and-”  The shooting outside the door stopped. 

Silence.

Rhys raised an eyebrow, smiling. "Yes, just as I thought."

“Oh and call me Jack, honey,” Jack laughed, leaning over to speak into the microphone. He turned to look at Rhys, who simply smiled and waited for him to continue. “ _ Handsome  _ Jack.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO  
> https://youtu.be/aJcSDmUgyBE?t=17s 


	18. Murder Husbands

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well holy shit. 
> 
> It's been a hell of a ride. 
> 
> I am so privileged to not only have friends to help me with ideas (erinchu, therhackoning and shippingismypersonalhell) but also to have fantastic readers whose comments and kudos make every piece of writing worthwhile. 
> 
> This fic has been one I've cherished most. It's been a pleasure writing it for you and I hope this last chapter does it justice. It's so hard finishing something you've spent so long doing. 
> 
> Enjoy, my loves. I'd love to hear from you when you're done. Hit me up on Tumblr (loki-dokey) too if you have any prompts you'd like to see me do now that I'm finished with this hunk o' rhack trash. 
> 
> xxxxxxx

_Eight months later:_

Rhys frowned, thumb pushing the ring on his finger around in monotonous circles. He had been on a call with a group of scientists on Pandora for at least an hour and he was _bored_. They were telling him numbers and information about the Hades Initiative but at that current moment he couldn’t care less. He yawned into his sleeve before kicking his legs up onto the desk and rubbing the bridge of his nose. This guy’s voice was the most tedious, uninteresting sound he’d ever heard in his life.

His thoughts drifted to Jack, who was currently schmoozing potential clientele from Eden Four at the Gorgon Bar. Rhys sighed, thinking about the wine and food and wishing he’d been able to join him but sadly other matters were equally important. That was how he’d been stuck with the dull job of talking to the dull man at the other end of the comms. He was finally about to suck it up and properly listen when the office door burst open and Jack stood there, covered head to toe in black soot. Rhys choked and sat up straight, which made Jack grimace even further.

“I’m very sorry, Edward, but I have to go. Something has _just_ come up. We’ll resume our conversation later, okay? _Bye_!” He didn’t really give Edward the chance to reply because he had already hung up before a word could leave his mouth. “Jack? What the hell happened to you?”

Stepping down from the raised platform where the desk sat, he crossed the room and brushed off his husband’s shoulders. Jack didn’t speak as he watched Rhys yank out a handkerchief and bring it to his face. “That bad, huh?”

A grunt escaped Jack’s throat and Rhys took this as a yes. Silently, he wrapped his hand around Jack’s and pulled him over to the couch. Leaving him sitting there with tired eyes and a pout, he hurried over to the water cooler to grab Jack a cup of water. As he turned, Jack sprawled himself across the couch and sighed loudly.

“Well, that went _fucking_ well,” he groaned, rubbing his face with his hands. Rhys tutted and reproduced the handkerchief to go back to removing the black. Jack took the water and kissed him on the cheek, to which Rhys had to let out a sigh of his own and ignored the dark smudge that most likely was left on his face.

“What happened?”

Jack took a deep breath. “So I was there chatting to those people from Eden Four, yeah? Who, by the way, I _totally_ sold us to.” He pointed finger guns at Rhys who giggled and settled down in Jack’s lap. He’d given up worrying about getting covered in dirt. _“Anyway_ , I get this goddamn call from R&D saying that the Helix machine is broken and all the engineers are busy and everything’s going to shit.” Waving his hands in the air, Jack glared into space. “So I excuse myself from dinner and go down there and they’re running around like freaking headless chickens. The machine is billowing smoke and they’re all ‘Handsome Jack, please save us!’” Jack cackled as he mocked them in a high voice and slapped his knee. “Man, that name still makes my goddamn dick twitch every time.” Rhys grinned and pressed his lips to Jack’s ear, drinking in the musky, heady scent of his husband. “No but seriously, I went up to this machine and it was clearly a cable malfunction so I get the tools from the closet and start working on it when the whole fucking thing blows up in my face.” Jack gestured down at himself and rolled his eyes. “Some of them laughed at me so I threatened to goddamned airlock them if they carried on. Thankfully an engineer turned up then and I could leave. Hence why I’m here, babe. I need some serious stress relief.”

At this, Rhys frowned. “ _You_ need stress relief? I just spent the last hour talking to some guy from Pandora who apparently can’t calculate numbers right. I basically had to do all the work for him. So don’t come strutting in here demanding _stress relief.”_

“I do not _strut_.”

Rhys huffed out a laugh. “Oh but you _do._ ”

Jack smiled and patted Rhys on the ass. “I guess we _both_ could use some love and affection, hmm?” He buried his nose into Rhys’s neck. “I can almost hear our shower calling us from here.”

Stretching, Rhys checked his watch. “It _is_ almost nine,” he replied, heat pooling in his pants at what Jack was insinuating. “And we have worked _so hard_ today…” His fingers slid down Jack’s neck and began unbuttoning his shirt. Jack shuddered and he felt his grip tighten on his back.

“ _So_ hard,” he muttered in a low voice. “Now let’s go do something about that.”

*

Black soot washed away into the water as Jack buried himself into Rhys once again. Crying out, Rhys reached out to grasp hold of something, _anything,_ but had to settle with pressing himself against the glass wall of the shower before letting out an almighty moan into his flesh arm. Pleasure shuddered through him as Jack gripped hard at his hip bones, sliding in as deep as he could manage.

“Fuck,” Jack growled, running a slow hand down Rhys’s back before suddenly leaning forward and grabbing a fistful of the younger man’s hair between his fingers. He yanked Rhys’s head back so that he could bite his ear. “You really _are_ stressed... hell, you're tight as shit, kitten.”

Whining in his throat, Rhys straightened a little and buried his head into his now-folded arms.

“Jack _please_ ,” he whimpered, bucking his hips. Jack chuckled into his shoulder before pressing a kiss there and snaking his hand around to grasp Rhys firmly. Rhys gasped at the touch, so sensitive yet so goddamn _good_ and he would have come had it not been for the cockring that sat tight at the base of his dick. Jack had him like putty in his hands and he absolutely _loved it_. There was something in the way Jack’s legs were shivering that told Rhys he was close. He was too and all it would take was Jack slipping the ring off at just the right moment and then finish together, which was always Rhys’s favourite way to go. Breathy, he turned his head and went to speak but Jack caught his mouth with his own and continued kissing him for a good three minutes before he was basically quaking where he stood.

“Jack, take the damned thing off and fucking come inside me, _please_ ,” Rhys moaned, bending over ever so slightly. Jack did as he was told, hand gripping at him tightly to pull the thing away. Rhys couldn’t hold it in any longer and came all over Jack’s hand before the man even had a chance to pull it away and Jack followed suit, pushing him harder against the shower wall as he finished.

“Holy shit babe, that was a _great_ stress relief,” he said eventually, huffing out a laugh as he pressed kisses across Rhys’s neck and down his spine. The younger man smiled, allowing the shower water to work its magic as he pulled off of Jack and turned around. His arms slid around his husband’s neck as he kissed him lightly on the lips. “This shower idea was excellent, if I do say so myself.”

“I’m afraid I have to agree,” Rhys replied, leaning past him to switch off the water. Jack reached out of the shower cubicle and grabbed them both towels, wrapping one around Rhys’s waist and tucking it in so it stayed fast.  “Sometimes you _can_ be right!” For this, he received a smack on the ass but he laughed it off, pecked Jack on the mouth one more time and bounded out of the shower to get ready for bed.

*

Running a finger along the top of the console, Rhys paused and rubbed at the dust between his fingers. He tutted and clucked his tongue, turning to the group of cowering researchers holding clipboards and holding their breath. Jack stood on the other side of the room, leaning casually against a cabinet and watching Rhys with a smirk. Rhys let one of his own pass across his lips before clearing his throat and turning his focus to the crowd.

“Now then,” he began, tucking his hands behind his back and pacing. “Word is, the project we set you a month ago is still in its infancy.” He paused, placing a hand on his chest and offering them all a grimace. “You see, we here at Hyperion don’t work at a snail’s pace like Torgue or Jakobs. We work with a quick pace and with deliberation, ensuring that we produce the best quality products at the fastest speed of all our competitors.” He took a deep breath, focusing in on the Head of Research. The man took a step back, eyes wide with fear. “Do you know how _embarrassing_ it is to have your next gun line outrun by fucking _Torgue_ ?! We have now lost a _shitload_ of profit thanks to you. What do you have to say for yourselves?”

The Head of Research opened his mouth but no words escaped his lips. A gunshot rang out into the room as the man dropped forward onto his knees, a fresh bullet hole clean through his head. He crumpled onto the floor in a heap to the sounds of gasps and small screams. Frantic eyes darted about like rabbits trapped in a cage and finally they found Jack, blowing across the top of his gun from where he remained against the cabinet. He grinned wolfishly, flashing them a wink.

“If you don’t do what you’re supposed to do, you don’t get to say _shit_ . Chew on _that_ , kiddos. We expect the line to be finished by the end of the week. If not?” He whirled the gun around his fingers. “It’ll be _all_ your blood that the janitorial staff are mopping up on Friday.”

Rhys let out a small laugh and folded his arms. The staff didn’t seem to know what to do with themselves. A few hurried off in various directions, a few eyed the body and went pale and a few just stood frozen, only their frightened eyes flitting between Rhys and Jack.

*

Jack spent months seeking out Lilith. He used many of Hyperion’s resources to track her down because as each day passed, Angel became more and more frustrated at being confined to the apartment. Whilst they’d moved into the penthouse suite which was like a palace, she was bored and sad and Jack just wanted to give her the best chance. He hated watching her mope about the place, her small new white wings trailing behind her. She hadn’t caused any incidents with her powers yet but both Rhys and Jack were taking precautions. Rhys had to admit that sometimes the “looks could kill” phrase actually seemed pretty plausible. Her eyes would light up with white fire which was often accompanied with a low, rumbling growl at the back of her throat. It was safe to say that he was... _wary._

It turned out that Lilith wasn’t a particularly nice person. She had been very flippant with Jack, stating that she found it hard to believe that a Siren could have been born off of Pandoran soil. She’d sent Maya - her second in command - up to Helios in her place to seek out the so called “siren” and send her back reports.

“What are you, a freaking regiment?” Jack had shouted over the comms when he’d last spoken to her. She’d simply huffed and said that order was important and that they had to be cautious that they weren’t being sent into a trap. “So you’re sending this Maya girl up instead of you? Wow, I never took Sirens for being cowardly.”

Lilith hadn’t liked that. She’d threatened Jack and told him that she wouldn’t send Maya if he was going to be a dick. Jack had laughed and told her that he was always a dick and that she’d have to suck it up.

Lilith hadn’t liked that either.

 

“You just have to focus really hard,” Maya said, holding Angel’s hands in her own. Angel had her eyes squeezed tight shut, her face turning red with concentration. She had really taken to Maya. The older Siren was calm, gentle and patient, completely the opposite of what Jack had had to deal with on the ECHO with Lilith. Maya had decided to stay on Helios to help Angel control and develop her powers and was there with her on the first day that Angel got to leave the penthouse. Her hand was tightly clasped around Angel’s, rubbing small circles onto the back of it with her thumb. The two of them were dressed in clothing that covered their giveaway tattoos but both were happy that Angel was out and about. The trip to get ice-cream had gone very well and everyone had made it home in one piece. However, things had been going slowly downhill as Maya’s challenges for Angel had been getting increasingly difficult.

“I can’t do it!” Angel blubbed, dropping onto her butt and pulling a sulky face. Jack cackled and Rhys grinned, swirling the straw around his juice. Angel snapped her head around and pouted, poking her tongue out and placing her hands on her hips.

“You can!” Maya sighed, smiling. “You’ve done it before so it’s not impossible, is it?”

“It is with _those_ losers watching!”

Jack gasped. “Losers? Where? I don’t see Vaughn anywhere! Oh but there _is_ Rhys...”

Rhys went to reply with a jab to Jack’s ribs but Angel cut in, stomping over to face her father.

“Stop _laughing at me._ ”

“Well it’s kinda hard not to when you pull a face like you’re doin’ a _huge_ poop.”

At this, the eight year old shrieked and bounded at her father, tugging him down to the ground in a wrestling match. The two whooped with laughter as they fought and Rhys rolled his eyes, giggling.

“Are they always like this?” Maya asked, raising an eyebrow.

“If there isn’t something good on TV, yeah.”

*

Despite Tassiter’s untimely departure from Hyperion, it seemed unfair to let tradition fall away. Therefore, when the time came for the annual Masquerade Ball to take place, ice sculptures, live music and premium cocktails were a must so that it could be the Ball of the century. Rhys wandered around what once was Tassiter Hall, now the ‘Hub of Heroism’, ticking things off of his checklist. He smiled as he took in the vast expanse of the place, bringing the clipboard to his chest. This was _his._ His and Jack’s. They’d finally made it and the whole company was theirs for the taking. The thought of this often drifted into his mind to remind him at random times. It never failed to bring a smile to his face. As he stood there with a faraway look his face, he didn’t notice the other CEO grilling the bartender about drinks. He was only brought out of his reverie when Jack raised his voice and clapped.

“You can’t serve cocktails with shitty prefab gloop! Not here! Not at this damn party! Go to the store and buy some _freaking strawberries.”_

Rhys span on his heel to see Jack with his hands spread on the bar, leaning forward to get as much into the bartender’s space as possible. Sighing and rolling his eyes, Rhys padded over and placed a gentle hand on Jack’s shoulder, pulling him down from his tiptoes onto the flats of his feet.

“Well done, Jack. I’ll tick you yelling at someone off the checklist, hmm?” Rhys prodded him in the chest with his pencil and Jack hissed, rubbing the spot and grinning.

“Someone had to make sure these assholes didn’t serve grimy cocktails tonight. I, at least, want to drink something with a little _class_.”

Rhys raised an eyebrow, offering Jack a small smile. “I can tell there are going to be some rather unsavoury drinks tonight no matter how much you complain,” he said, hooking his arm around Jack’s to walk them back to the penthouse to get ready. Jack laughed, flashing him a grin and a sideways glance as the elevator doors slid open.

“Oh, I’m sure that won’t happen,” he drawled, pushing Rhys into the elevator and caging him in against the wall. “No one would dream of serving anyone unsavoury drinks tonight, would they?”

“No, not at all,” Rhys giggled. He slid his arms around Jack’s neck. “Who would dream of doing that?”

*

“Dad, you can’t go like that.”

“What the _fuck_ has your father done now,” Rhys breathed, glowering as he flew out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. Jack was standing in his usual attire, save for the sneakers that had been switched out for boots. “ _Excuse me_?!”

Jack turned around from the mirror and grinned, throwing Rhys a double thumbs-up. “This way I’m instantly ready for action. You don’t get this much movement in a suit.” Following this, he started to throw out random dance moves and Rhys slapped a hand to his face, dragging it down slowly and keeping his eyes tight shut, hoping that when he opened them it would all be pretend and Jack would be in a suit. Alas, this wasn’t the case. When he cracked open an eyelid, Angel was laughing and running into her father’s arms. Her father who was wearing a _sweater that had about ninety more holes in it since the last hundred Rhys had fixed._

“You can’t wear that,” Rhys said, matter-of-factly. “Nope. You have a new suit. You will _wear_ the new suit. You look _amazing_ in a suit.”

Jack snorted. “And where’s _your_ suit, Rhysie?” he asked, pointing at Rhys’s skinny frame. He was clad in nothing but his boxers and a vest.

And a frown.

“I am _getting there,_ ” he growled, clenching his fists. “I am sorting my hair out first which clearly you haven’t bothered to do yet. Get _dressed,_ Jack.” With that, Rhys threw his hands up in the air in despair and reentered the bathroom from whence he came, Jack chortling behind him.

 

By the time Rhys was ready to put on his own suit (the hair was a long process), Jack had sorted his own hair and was already dressed in his smarter attire. Rhys breathed a sigh of relief when he entered the room, Jack standing there in a jet-black three piece and silver cufflinks. He was sorting out the latter when Rhys sidled over, still undressed, and slid his arms into the blazer and around the back of his husband. He pressed a kiss to his forehead and smiled.

“Living up to the name, I see,” he muttered, giving Jack a squeeze before heading over to the closet. “I’m so glad you’ve had a change of heart.”

“Maybe I need a damn change of husband,” Jack murmured, moving to look in the mirror once again. Rhys span on the spot, suit in hand, and poked out his tongue.

“Not my fault that you have no fashion sense and need dire help sometimes,” he shrugged, sitting on the edge of the bed and tugging on his socks.

 

When they were finally ready - Rhys in his grey suit and Jack in his black - the two men kissed Angel goodbye and headed for the elevators.

“You ready for this?” Rhys whispered, squeezing Jack’s hand. Jack squeezed back.

“When am I not, cupcake?” he replied, winking. Rhys took a deep breath. It was going to be a hell of a night, in more ways than one.

*****

Despite doing a shitload for Hyperion in the near-year that they had been running it, Rhys found it hard to remember a time where he had been prouder of himself for something he’d done in that time. The Hub of Heroism looked incredible in Hyperion’s fabricated twilight, lit up by bright neon colours. The place was thronging with people and Rhys couldn’t hide a smirk as he spotted the first gold mask with a black _H_ glinting through the crowd. Moving his arm, he dug his elbow into Jack’s ribs and nodded his head in the direction of the mask. Jack searched for a while but when his eyes found it, he too cracked a smile and pulled Rhys through the crowd to get a drink.

“To long and happy lives together,” Jack said, raising his glass and meeting Rhys’s halfway. Rhys tossed him a wink as he sipped his champagne. Oh yes. That’s what _they’d_ have alright.

 

The evening rolled on, everyone complimenting them on the party and offering to buy them drinks. Rhys was somewhat intoxicated when he clambered onto the stage with Jack at ten to make their speech.

“First of all,” Jack began, clapping his hands together, “it’s been a pleasure having you all here tonight for the annual Masquerade Ball. Now despite some ups and downs this year, like Tassiter _dying_ and us, you know, taking the _throne_ if you will...some of you might have been thinking, ‘oh no! Will we get our ball? Will life continue as normal?!’ and because we are good, caring CEOs, we thought that we couldn’t just throw a ball like the ones in the past. We had to think _bigger!_ Which we did and apparently that comes across cos all your compliments have been super sweet.” Clicking his tongue, Jack finger gunned the audience. “Anyhoo, Rhys and I have been honoured to be your leaders so far and we can honestly say that at the moment, most of you are doing a _bang up_ job! Champagne for everyone!”

Waitresses with trays of champagne stalked the crowds, passing out glasses for the upcoming toast. From where the CEOs stood, they could make out a few gold masks glinting in the light, small _Hs_ adorning the sides. When everyone had a glass each, Jack and Rhys popped open their own bottle onstage that everyone cheered at, applauding as they each filled their own glass.

“To Hyperion!” Jack roared, thrusting his glass in the air.

“To Hyperion!” the audience chorused, copying and swigging down the contents of their flutes.

“Now then,” Rhys said, stepping forward. His tongue swiped across his lips, capturing the sweet taste of champagne that was lingering there. “If you were paying attention to my husband’s speech just then, you’ll note that he said _most_ of you were doing…How did you say?” He turned to Jack, who leant towards him.

“A bang up job, kitten.”

“...A bang up job. That _most_ of you have been following company standards.” With that, Rhys placed his flute down on the nearby table and tucked his arms behind his back. He began pacing the stage. “So those of you who we feel have done extra _special_ work recently have been gifted with Hyperion issue masks for this event. We hope you’ve enjoyed showing them off to your friends.” His eyes narrowed and Rhys stopped pacing. Words slipped out of his mouth, filled with venom. “Because, sad to say,” he sniffed, “that this will be the last time you _see_ your friends. Or anyone. Right Jack?”

“Oh yes,” Jack replied, joining Rhys at the front of the stage. “For all that _special_ work you’ve been doing selling Hyperion secrets to Torgue, embezzling, trying to plot to _kill_ us...” Jack listed the crimes off on his fingers, “ _you_ get a one way ticket to _goddamn hell_.”

There was a unanimous clatter and smash of glasses and bodies dropping to the floor. The poison had done its work, and so had Rhys and Jack.

“Enjoy the rest of the party!” they chimed in unison and laughed to each other as the music began once more.

*

“Did you know that Atlas has apparently got secret facilities down on Pandora?” Rhys mused, flicking through some old online forums to pass the time. He was snuggled under the sheets of their expansive bed, occasionally flicking his gaze to Jack who was reading a book in the armchair by the fire.

“Hmm?” Jack said, looking up from his book. “What’s that?”

Rhys prodded at the screen of his tablet. “Yeah, apparently Atlas had secret facilities all over Pandora. Some online sources are saying that they even started creating a Vault Key of their very own.”

Shoulders shaking with laughter, Jack sighed and placed the book on the table beside him. He walked over to the bed and clambered on, crawling over to Rhys and taking the tablet from his hands. He moved it to the end of the bed and turned over, laying his head on Rhys’s lap.

“Do you not remember the _last_ time you involved ‘online sources’?” he asked, grinning. “Look where _that_ got us.”

Rhys smirked. “Yes but those were crappy low-level Hyperion sources that led us to nowhere but trouble with Tassiter. I barely knew what I was doing when I tried to find dirt on that man. But now that I’m more savvy, I can delve deeper. Things have elements of truth to them where I’m looking.”  
“And what do you think we should do with this so called, ‘truth’?”

Rhys’s hand dropped down to begin absentmindedly playing with Jack’s hair. He shrugged.

“I don’t know? Just thought it was super interesting. Secret bases. Only Pandora, huh?” He chuckled, picking up the tablet and placing it on the bedside table. Jack rolled onto his side of the bed and pulled the sheets over him, tugging Rhys’s ass into his crotch just as Rhys managed to switch off the lights.

“Night pumpkin,” he muttered, almost asleep already.

“Goodnight,” Rhys replied. He smiled as Jack squeezed him closer.

“Love you.”

“I love you too.”

*

_Six years later:_

It had taken a long time to clear all of the bandits out of the facility. There was some ridiculous racing game taking place that Rhys mentioned was a death rally but Jack didn’t even want to know what one of those was. Or how Rhys _knew_ what one of those was. He was pretty agitated by the time the place was clear and he couldn’t be dealing with hyperactive Rhys as they broke into the door that should lead them to wherever Rhys assumed it was that they needed to go.

“I swear, pumpkin, if this shit isn’t real, I’ll freaking fight you.” Jack used his wrist to wipe away the blood that was dripping down from his temple. Rhys was quite literally bouncing off the walls.

“No no, it’s _here_! I swear it is. That’s what I’ve deduced anyway.”

Jack slapped a hand to his forehead. “Don’t I know it,” he groaned.

“ _Right_?” Vaughn grunted, slapping Jack on the back. “I feel you.”

“Here! Look!” Darting over to a panel in the wall, Rhys opened it to reveal a keypad. Instantly, he switched on his ECHO eye and worked out the code. “Stand back!” He punched in the numbers. Just as the door swung open (much to Jack’s surprise), there was an almighty crash from above. Sunlight suddenly streamed through from a room that had just previously been pitch black with darkness.

“Dads?” Angel called, the sound of her wings flapping filling the room. Jack and Rhys stepped inside, wincing in the brightness of the sun. The ceiling of the room had crumbled away and was now lying in pieces on the ground. Angel’s silhouette descended upon them and she didn’t speak again until she landed with a huff before her fathers. The fourteen year old grinned.  
“So like...I looked at the map and worked out that the room was below the rally track and...yeah...I broke the ground. Totally meant to though! Dad, don’t _look_ at me like that.” She shot Jack a glare and folded her arms.

Fiona and Sasha dashed past into the room, beginning to press buttons and open a variety of different things. Rhys glanced past Angel and hissed.

“What are you doing?!”

“This place is so _cool_ ,” Sasha announced. She pressed a button and it opened a box. “Holy shit, no way! The Atlas Silver! Ah...one of the rarest SMGs on Pandora! These models were never even released!”

Rhys rolled his eyes at his sister before catching a glimpse of a large button on the wall. Jack had apparently already seen it, as he had strolled over and was inspecting it. Rhys collected himself and bounded to Jack’s side. Jack slid an arm around Rhys’s waist and kissed him on the cheek, dragging his lips to Rhys’s ear.

“Would you like to do the honours, Rhysie?”

Unable to withhold himself any longer, Rhys’s hand darted forwards and pressed the button. A sliver of orange light shot down from the wall and sped along the ground towards something in the middle of the room. A console rose from the centre and Rhys held his breath, unable to believe what was happening.

“Fuck,” Jack breathed as two chambers holding two pieces of something were revealed.

“Oh my god,” Rhys said, reaching out and taking one. Jack did the same. They stood there for a moment, gazing down at the pieces in their hands. “Oh my god, it’s _real_.”

“Fuck,” Jack swore again. “Looks like you really are the brains of this outfit.”

The pieces snapped together suddenly, making them jump. What formed was a map, glowing orange. Fiona, Sasha and Vaughn left the new gadgets they had found and made their way over to the orb.

“It’s a map?” Fiona announced, raising an eyebrow. Rhys’s chest swelled with pride. He’d been right all along. He glanced at the people around the room who, despite their moaning, had believed in him and allowed him to seek out what he believed to be something that would change the face of Hyperion, of Pandora, of their _lives_ forever.

“This, ladies and gentlemen, is the _Gortys Project_...and it’s gonna lead us to a vault…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bless you for reading this fic! 
> 
> May your days be filled with the best of sin.
> 
> AND REMEMBER: Once you go rhack, you never go back.
> 
> Later, kiddos.

**Author's Note:**

> Please feel free to leave a comment if you enjoyed this chapter! Any and all comments are appreciated :D


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